Mr Sun
by sevenblankpages
Summary: My doctor told me it was iron deficiency anemia. My body couldn't make enough red-blood cells to carry oxygen to my brain, and as a result, I was constantly cold. Until he looked at me. UPDATE: A revised & retitled under Mr. Sunshine...go find it! :)
1. Preface

_Preface_

There was a time in my life when I thought the cold would never go away. It could be in the middle of August, eighty something degrees outside and I'd still be wearing oversized sweatshirts and boots.

It ran through my veins like ice and it settled in my bones, gripping them in iron vices and never let go. No amount of sweaters, hot showers or warm drinks could change the seemingly permanent chill in my body.

It started in my hands.

Of course, there was always a chill in my body. It never went away. Sure, there were times where I could ignore it and be content in shorts, a t-shirt and sandals. But sometimes, it just got to be too much to handle. And it would always start in my hands. I'd shiver and it was like the ice was liquid; it would run through my fingers, making them stiff; run through my arms, into my shoulders and make them ache; then all the way down my legs, until they were bumpy with goose-bumps, down into my feet. I could be wearing three pairs of socks and still, my feet were like ice cubes.

My doctor told me it was iron deficiency anemia. My body couldn't make enough red-blood cells to carry oxygen to my brain, and as a result, I was constantly cold.

Until he looked at me.

And in his eyes, I saw. I'd never be cold again.


	2. Chapter One

The fact that I woke up and it was light outside was my first clue that I woke up late.

Really late.

Before I threw myself out of bed, I cracked open one eye to look at my clock.

_Seven thirty_.

Cursing, I nearly tripped on my throw rug and bounced into my dresser, bruising my hip. Cursing even louder, I hurriedly pulled on some clothes- a sweatshirt that was much too big, leggings and boots. Not bothering to run a brush through my hair, I put it in a bun, and decided against contacts, and used my glasses instead. I glanced outside, then groaned.

My second clue was that the car was gone.

I grabbed my bag and sprinted into the kitchen, where two of my three siblings froze at the kitchen table, their spoons of cereal half way to their mouths.

"Why didn't anyone wake me up?" I cried.

Maqahla, who was seven, shrugged her shoulders. "We thought you wanted to sleep in."

"Yeah!" Raven, who was five, stuck her tongue out at me. I sighed, grabbed a brush from the bathroom, then hurried back to them and started brushing their hair furiously.

"You guys literally have ten minutes to get ready," I told them. "Is your homework done?"

"Yes," they chorused.

"Do you have lunches packed?"

Maqahla shook her head as I tried pulling it into a ponytail. I started over. "Dean didn't make us anything before he left."

I groaned, and continued to hustle, trying to get my sisters ready for school. The bus pulled up just as they finished tying the leather cords on the mocassins and I finished making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. They ran off, their backpack straps flapping in the breeze. I glanced at the clock when the bus pulled away.

_Seven forty-three_.

I had seventeen minutes to be in my first class. On a good day, it took me a half hour to walk to school, five minutes if I had the car that Dean and I shared. My mom, who worked the graveyard shift at diner in Forks, had her car and wasn't due home for another hour or two. Sighing, I locked the front door (like that could stop anyone from getting inside, anyways) and began trudging to school as fast as I could.

I was almost seventeen years old and I already felt as if I had lived the most of my life.

I was constantly moving, though I didn't really mind. The only word I could use to describe my life was overwhelming. My mother tried her very hardest to provide, though she wasn't there physically or emotionally- just financially, and only just. Dean and I had never met our father, and the girls' father lived on the Makah reservation with his new wife and family.

Like most of La Push, we were poor. We didn't have the things that most people had- most people, who lived on a few miles from the rez. Crossing the border line from Forks to La Push, was like time-traveling. La Push was very old-fashioned, but somehow, we all thrived and were happy. Despite some factors, I was happy. There were things that would make my life easier, of course- if my house stopped falling apart, and Dean could hold down a decent job for more than a week, and my mother would step up, and my anemia would go away- but I had learned long ago that if I wanted to be happy, I had to think of the little things, such as the smiles my sisters gave me when I was able to pick them up from school, or having a sleepover with Avenue, my friend from school. So I dealt with the fact that Dean was lazy, my mother was never home and I shivered as often as I blinked.

Despite the fact that I was walking briskly, I was still late to class. It was when I was at my locker, spinning the lock when I realized that I had left my bag at home- on the kitchen counter, where I dropped it before I started brushing the girls' hair. I slammed my locked shut and dragged my feet to my English class room.

Everyone looked up when I walked inside. I avoided all eyes as my face flushed.

"Sorry," I muttered to my professor and scurried to my seat.

"Kimber, we're open to page sixty-two, and answering problems one through five," Mrs Henley told me. I opened my mouth to let her know that I didn't have my things with me when a small stack of paper, a pen and a text book slid across my desk. Surprised, I looked at the person sitting next me-

And I froze.

Sitting in the desk- the desk that had been empty for almost two weeks- was Jared Cameron. _The_ Jared Cameron, the Jared Cameron who I'd been infatuated with since the day I first laid eyes on him in first grade. Jared Cameron, who I've never spoken to before in my life, inspite of the fact that we lived in the same neighborhood and had been in the same classes in school for most of our education. The beautiful, Jared Cameron, who most likely didn't know my name.

Who, if possible, had become even more attractive.

What had happened to him? The last time I had seen Jared, he was only a couple inches taller than me and thin- he had always been lanky, but now...

Even though he was sitting down, I could tell that Jared had grown a substantial amount since I last saw him. He was toned- _definitely_ toned; his sleeveless shirt left little to the imagination, because it sat on him like a second skin. His skin was darker, as if he'd spent most of his time out in the sun. And on his right arm was a tribal tattoo.

I had never felt more unnerved before in my life.

He was _staring_ at me. Really staring at me, like he was trying to read me like a book, or something. My heart sunk like a ship in the Pacific when I realized that it was _he_ who had given my the pencil and paper.

"Why-"

"Kimber," he said and his voice was like birds singing on the first day of Spring; it rolled off his tongue naturally, like he had grown up saying it.

Like nothing I had ever heard before. I shivered, though I had already been cold before I sat down.

"Kim," I said quietly and pushed my falling glasses further up my nose. "Just Kim."

He smiled faintly and nodded his head slightly at the supplies he had pushed onto my desk. His eyes never left mine. "I noticed that you aren't carrying anything with you. You can borrow mine, if you want."

I glanced down at the textbook, open to the correct page. My heart was pounding. Was this a joke? Was someone trying to cruelly punish me for waking up so late this morning? It certainly seemed so. I bit the inside of my cheek.

"Thanks," I said carefully and looked back up at him. He seemed satisfied and then moved his desk closer to mine, so that we could both read from the textbook. The desk grated loudly over the floor and I jumped, bumping his bare shoulder with my own. I gasped.

Because I was anemic- my body did not make enough red blood cells to carry oxygen to my brain, so I was constantly cold and pale all of the time. When I was younger, I was often teased because my skin was more white than brown. They called me White- Girl and other derogatory names, names that, at the time, hurt me so much that I stopped talking to just about everyone but Avenue. Silly things like that didn't matter anymore and I stopped caring.

Since I was so cold all the time, I was always wearing heavy clothing- today, I was wearing the oversized sweatshirt with the sweater leggings and boots. Despite this, I could still feel the burning skin on Jared's arm when I jumped.

"Sorry," he whispered. "I didn't mean to make you jump."

"Your skin," I said quietly. "It's so hot...are you sick?"

"Oh," he said, looking down at his arm. The tattoo was large and covered most of his upper tricep. Normally, tattoos disgusted me but this one made me shiver- and not from the cold. "No. I just run a higher temperature than most people, I guess."

"Oh," I said, but his skin was much too hot to be normal. I dropped the subject because it was not my place to pry. I tried concentrating on what we were reading, but I was internally freaking out- Jared Cameron was sitting beside me. I could feel his body heat through my sweatshirt.

I was hyper aware of everything he was doing. His eyes scanned the page and he tapped his pencil on the desk to some tune in his head. He didn't seem to be concentrating either; he glanced at me a couple of times and sighed deeply.

A few minutes later, the teacher called us to attention to discuss what we had read and Jared still hadn't moved his desk back, though we were done reading. I had to sit ontop of my hands to keep from reaching out to him involuntarily. I craved the heat he was exuding and continued to shiver.

He noticed.

"Cold?" he asked and I shrugged.

"It's nothing."

He nodded but didn't look convinced. He scooted half an inch closer and ran a hand through his hair. I closed my eyes and breathed in deeply, his scent tickling my senses. I breathed in again, trying to decipher what the smell was. It was better than any bottled cologne; a mixture of wood and spice that could only be described as Jared.

I was going insane.

Jared didn't move his desk back until the bell rang, ending the class. I smiled at him and handed him back his pencil.

"Thanks," I said and slid his paper across the desk. "I was in a rush this morning."

"Keep them," he said, pushing them back. "You'll need them for your other classes, right?"

He had a point, so I just nodded and took them back, sticking the pencil in my hair and giving a slightly awkward wave when I left the classroom.

When he was gone from my sight, it was like all hell broke loose on my body. My palms itched and became clammy, and I felt like I had a cold sweat. I discreetly checked to see if I needed deodorant, and then tried to find Avenue to tell her what had just happened in English.

She was going to flip out.


	3. Chapter Two

**AN**: What's up, guys? Sorry I've been kind of MIA- college just started back up and I've been really stressed out. I am the epitome of a broke college student with a piece of shit car, bills and a dad who just wants all of my money. I haven't really been in the creative mood, if you know what I'm saying. BUT. I signed up for a creative writing class and it is utterly amazing. I've had it twice, but I literally wrote this whole thing this morning and I can feel the creative writing juices flowing faster and better than ever. Enough of me rambling, enjoy chapter two and tell me what you think at the end! xx

* * *

><p>"I bet it's a trick."<p>

My heart clenched at her words. "Why would it be a trick?"

She gave me a look. "Let's get real, Kim. Jared Cameron. _Jared Cameron_. And all of a sudden, he just wants to talk to you? It just seems weird to me."

"You don't think he could like someone like me." My voice was shaking, not only in anger, but in fear. I feared her words, because they could be true.

"Not at all. Why wouldn't he like you? Just why now? Why does he have such a sudden interest in you?" She shrugged her shoulders. "That's all."

I sighed as she shut her locker and looked at me. Avenue was gorgeous and a good friend. I wouldn't call her my best friend because she was easily frustrated and always wanted to be logical about everything.

Sometimes I just wanted someone to squeal with.

She patted my hand and smiled at me. "Things will get more clear. Just be careful. You don't know him, so you don't know what he's up to. Just be on your toes."

I nodded and waved goodbye as she turned on her heel and left. I'd been nervous and fidgety for the rest of the day, although I hadn't seen Jared once since class this morning. I was waiting for Dean to pick me up from wherever it was that he went for lunch- and never returned for the rest of his classes. I sat down in a chair by the office and front doors, where I had a clear view of the parking lot where Dean would be picking me up.

"-Sam is going to _freak_ out when I tell him!"

"-shit's supposed to be _rare_, man, what the hell?"

"I don't even know-"

I looked up just in time to see Jared and Paul Lahote, Jared's best friend, walk into the lobby near where I was sitting. They could have passed for brothers.

Paul smirked, his eyes narrowing mischievously at Jared before nodding at me.

"Hey, Kim."

Odd.

I smiled tight-lipped and pushed my glasses up my nose. "Hi."

Paul clapped Jared on the shoulder roughly. "See you later, man. Emily's at 6!"

"See ya."

Jared's eyes followed Paul as he left the building, a breeze catching the door and pushing it open wider before it closed with a bang. He looked at me and smiled, his eyes, his face- everything molding into perfection.

Jared was _sexy_.

He used to be lanky. Like his limbs were too thin and long for his body. He was like a noodle, in a sense, because he moved so awkwardly and hadn't grown into himself yet.

The new Jared was nothing like a noodle. He was more like a rock.

His shoulders were broad- he reminded me of someone who'd just gotten back from boot camp. His waist was still small, but obviously toned; his shirt clung in all the right places and left little to the imagination.

His arms were questionable: it literally looked like he'd swallowed small boulders, and somehow they'd magically traveled to his biceps.

His hair, which had been long and wavy, and traditionally in a braid, like most other guys on the reservation, had been chopped short, but it was styled in a slightly lazy point up front; it was shorter in the back. It was still silky and shiny, just two feet shorter.

I had the strongest urge to run my fingers through his hair.

And he was smiling at me.

I didn't understand it, really. He was beautiful, actually. I'd never thought to use that word to describe a man- because he was no longer just a boy- but handsome just didn't seem to do him any justice.

He nodded at me. "Hey."

I tried swallowing the lump that formed in my throat. "Hi."

He had a small smile on his face, a ghost of a smirk. He sat down beside me and I could feel the heat radiating off him. The urge to reach out and touch him from my first class came roaring back and I laced my hands together tightly to keep from doing so.

"How's it going?"

"Swell," I said under my breath. He chuckled, but his face was serious.

"Are you waiting for someone?"

I glanced sideways at him and the words were out of my mouth before I could stop it.

"Why do you wanna know?"

That small smile appeared on his face again- like he knew something that I didn't. "Curious."

I sighed, accepting the fact that he wasn't about to give me a straight answer. "I'm waiting for my brother."

"Where is he?" he asked. He leaned back in the chair, crossing his arms behind his head and making himself comfortable, but also flexing in the process. I blushed and looked away quickly.

"I'm not sure," I admitted. "But he should be here soon."

I gave him a pointed look then, silently telling him that he could leave whenever he wanted. He didn't have to sit here and pity me.

"I can wait," he told me.

"You don't have to, is what I'm saying," I shot back. He raised an eyebrow.

"What if I want to?" he said quietly. I scoffed.

"Why _would_ you want to?"

He shrugged. "Maybe I want to get to know you."

Those were the words I'd been waiting for since the day I first laid my eyes on Jared. But now I was suspicious.

"But _why_?" I asked, facing him.

He shrugged again, smiling wider. "Why not?"

"You're not going to give me a straight answer, are you?" I said, irritated.

He shook his head. "Most likely not."

"Right."

And I sat back in my chair, silently waiting for Dean.

Maybe it _was_ some sort of prank, like how Avenue suggested. Paul had drastically changed, too. He used to be puny and now- now he was three times his old size and had anger issues. He didn't seem like he cared too much about anything; the last couple classes, he'd been sleeping in all of them.

But he was Jared's best friend, and his anger problems were notorious.

I snuck a quick peek at Jared who was already look at me. I looked away quickly, but the damage was done.

He laughed hard, his shoulders shaking _and he slipped an arm around my shoulders_.

If I was like _any other teenage girl in this world_, I would have sat back and _enjoyed_ the fact that the man I was practically in love with had his arm wrapped around me.

But the heat from his skin was like a shockwave to my brain.

"C'mon Kim," he joked. "I-"

But I ripped myself away from him with a small gasp.

He was hot. Burning hot, like how he was before and I was already red in the face from this whole conversation, interaction- whatever the _hell_ it was. Through the office doors, I _finally_ saw the little silver car that Dean and I shared pull up.

"I gotta go," I mumbled. "My brother's here."

"Kim, wait-!"

But I booked it.

I power walked through the parking lot, dodging parked cars to get to Dean. I finally reached it, pulling open the passenger door to find the seat already occupied, but some nameless girl that was sucking faces with my brother.

There was a suction noise as Dean pulled away. He looked up in me in surprise.

"Kim-"

I didn't have the time.

"Get out," I ordered the girl. Her hair was streaked horribly with what was supposed to be blonde, but was a hideous shade of orange and her makeup was outrageous. She looked questioningly at Dean. "I said get out!"

The girl scrambled from the car and I jumped in her place instead, slamming the door shut in her face.

"What the fuck, Kim?" Dean shouted furiously.

"Drive," I told him. "Or I'm telling Mom you haven't been in school all damn day."

Grumbling, Dean pulled out of the parking lot, leaving the nameless and orange girl behind. I hoped Jared hadn't come after me but I was too chicken to turn around to check.

"Thanks for waking me up this morning, ass-wipe," I said disgustedly.

Dean shrugged, which was his normal answer for everything. I raised an eyebrow at him.

"And for helping me with Maqahla and Raven this morning. You know, the least you could have down was made their lunch or something-"

"God Kim, just shut up, okay?" he shouted. "You sound just like Mom- you're not Mom, Kim!"

"I know I'm not Mom!" I bit back angrily. "_Mom_ isn't even Mom right now. I'm trying to keep us together!"

"But you can't, Kim," he told me harshly. When did the conversation turn to this? I was in shock, but too angry at him to notice much of anything else right now. "You just can't."

"I _could_ if you weren't so set in keeping us apart!"

Dean slammed on the brakes and I flew against my seatbelt. Thankfully, there wasn't anyone behind us.

"What the _fuck_," he said quietly, turning to glare at me. "Is that supposed to mean?"

"You know _perfectly_ well what I mean, Dean," I said coldly. I settled back in my seat and stared straight ahead. "Drive."

"Tell me what you meant!"

"Meaning you don't give a fucking _shit_ about any of us!" I shouted. "Meaning you don't give a fuck about what happens at all! Not me, not Maqahla or Raven and certainly not Mom!"

"Are you out of your damn mind?" he cried, hitting the steering wheel. "Are you actually serious right now?

"If you cared about any of us, you would help me! You would keep a damn job, you would help me with the girls! I do this shit all by my fucking self! But no, everything is always about partying and your friends, and smoking and girls- what about your damn family, Dean?"

My throat was sore from screaming and I had tears streaming down my face. Dean was finally quiet.

"What about me?" I whispered. "Your twin, Dean. I'm your twin sister. Don't you care about me at all?"

He turned to look at me I hastily wiped at my face. This wasn't where I had intended the conversation to go.

"I love you," he said seriously. "But I can't- I just can't deal with any of this shit right now."

"Dean-"

"I can't."

And before I could even think to stop him, he had the car in park and was gone, down the street and disappearing into the woods, leaving the door swinging behind him.

"Dean!"

But he was too far away to hear me.

I sighed, hopping over the center console into the driver's seat and slammed the door shut. I drove home silently.

* * *

><p>Jared knew that he could have gone after Kim and caught up to her easily.<p>

But he didn't. He let her go.

* * *

><p>Maqahla and Raven were already home when I walked through the door, which meant that I was late.<p>

Of course, Mom was home but she was sleeping and would not emerge from her room for another couple of hours.

The girls were sitting in front of the television, watching Spongebob on the fuzzy set. It was going to break soon, I knew, and it was the only TV in the house. I certainly didn't have the money to get another one and the girls would be upset when it eventually died.

I hoped they'd like to play outside more when that happened.

"Hi Kimmy," they chorused without moving or turning around.

"Hi," I said, sitting on the couch behind them. "How was school?"

Maqahla turned first and I gasped. Raven followed suit and my jaw dropped.

"I got into a fight at school!" Maqahla said excitedly.

"I helped!" Raven chirped.

Maqahla's beautifully and normally flawless skin was marred by errant bruising. She had a small split lip in the middle of a larger bruise. Raven's eye was slowly but surely turning black, but both their eyes were shining brightly. They'd never looked more prouder of themselves before.

"What the hell happened?" I demanded. "Tell me!"

"Well, it wasn't really at school," Maqahla corrected herself thoughtfully.

"Where did it happen?"

"On the bus!" Raven said.

"What happened?" I demanded again. "Who hit you?"

"Shannah Quicke!" Maqahla said.

"And Tommy!" Raven said, throwing up her little fists and jumping up and down.

I put both of my hands around Raven's and pushed them gently down to her sides.

"You never hit anyone, guys," I said sternly. "The only time you hit someone is if they hit you first."

"We did!" Maqahla protested. "Shannah and Tommy were laughing at us on the bus!"

"Why?"

"Because you packed our lunch for school," she told me. "They took our lunches and starting laughing at us. Then Tommy hit Raven _for no good reason_ and made her cry, so I punched him. Then Shannah punched me and then Raven hit Tommy-"

"Wait," I interrupted. My head was swimming. "This happened on the school bus? What did your driver say?"

"She didn't," Maqahla said. "It was on the back of the bus."

"What were you doing at the back of the bus?" I cried out. The back of the bus was for the older grades; the lower grades sat up front. "What were you even doing back there?"

"Shannah and Tommy took our lunches, I told you!" Maqahla said. "The driver didn't see anything."

Instead of two crying and defeated children who were sad about being beaten up, they were excited. Proud.

"You're not mad at us, are you?" Raven asked, suddenly in a small voice.

I sighed, then pulled them both and squeezed them tightly to my chest.

"I'm not mad. But if something like that happens again, you have to tell your bus driver."

"Okay," Raven said.

"We will," Maqahla agreed.

"What did your teacher say? Did you get your lunches back?"

"No," Maqahla asked and held her tummy. "We were so hungry!"

"My teacher didn't say nothing," Raven said quietly. "She just gave me weird looks."

I felt like shit. "I'm going to make dinner in a little while. Don't worry about your teachers giving you weird looks or anything like that. Don't be the first one to throw a punch. You only hit if you need to defend yourself- got it?"

"Got it," the said together.

"Sweet deal, guys," I said. "Why don't you get your homework done so we don't have to do it after dinner?"

They scrambled for their backpacks and I just sat back, taking a breather for a minute. My sisters were in second and first grades. Why in the hell were older kids _hitting_ them for crying out loud? Stealing their lunches? I felt anger building up inside, but I didn't regret telling my sisters to hit back if they needed to. Violence certainly never was the answer, but I couldn't picture my sister's cowering back in fear from someone hitting them. I didn't want to picture it and I never wanted it to happen.

I inhaled deeply, closing my eyes and rubbing my temples. Jared Cameron _talked_ to me today. Dean was gone. Mom was sleeping. I had work in two hours. My life was hectic and I didn't know when it was going to slow down.

When I was going to slow down.

And I was still cold.


	4. Chapter Three

**AN:** Yep. I'm updating. You should be proud. I'm _desperately_ looking for a beta- I've messaged a couple of people but I haven't heard back from anyone, sooo if you're up to the job, please message me on here, when I only check my messages when i'm on the site OR you could always email me at brittanyxraee (.) aim (.) com, where I get my emails sent directly to my phone. I'm just looking for someone to check my grammar, make sure my tenses are all caught up and the same (I seem to have a problem with that, thanks to **Cassy-Kay**, for helping me out!) and to smooth out any plot kinks. I mostly write my stories at night, after work and school, so I'm tired and groggy, meaning that I don't always proofread what I'm submitting- which is TOTALLY a problem, because then you're focused on the mistakes, rather than what you're reading. Anyways, I'm sorry for rambling, so onwards with the chapter! Please tell me what you think at the end!

* * *

><p>The front door opened with a loud bang that made both the girls and myself jump. They looked up, their mouths chewing their chicken nuggets and macaroni quickly, as if they'd never eaten before.<p>

I felt like a shit sister.

Dean's door slammed shut.

I sighed, wiping my hands on a dish towel. There was a footstep behind me, and my mom appeared, looking sleepy. "Hey guys."

"Hi Mom," we all said. She gave what I believe to be a smile, but it came out as a grimace and her face drooped. She wasn't old- she'd had both Dean and I when she was seventeen- but she looked like she was in her late forties.

My mom used to be beautiful.

She used to have long curly hair that I played with a lot when I was Raven's age. They were perfect corkscrew curls and they never got frizzy. I used to be so jealous and I wanted them so much- my hair was pin-straight and couldn't hold a curl no matter how hot the curling iron got or how much hairspray I used.

Her eyes, a golden hazel with flecks of green, used to shine and sparkle brightly, even when she was sad.

Her teeth weren't perfectly straight; quite the opposite actually. She had a small gap in her front teeth, but they were so white and she had such a pretty smile that you looked past the imperfections.

I hadn't seen my mother smile in a really long time.

She yawned then, and grabbed a mug from the cabinet, filling it with coffee from the coffee pot.

"Do you have work tonight?" she asked me.

"Yep," I said, backing out of the kitchen. It was difficult to be around someone who exuded so much sadness and negativity; it was uncomfortable. "I'll be home around eleven."

And I ran to my room.

I worked in a fancy-shmancy department store on the Makah reservation. It was the only one besides whatever was in Seattle or Port Angeles. We got customers from Forks, La Push, Makah- it was always crowded.

I was a sales associate in the jewelry department. There were things on display that cost more than anything I'd make in my lifetime, probably. It was an okay job. I made a little more than minimum wage, and it helped with some of the bills at home. It didn't do a lot, but I felt better knowing that we still had heat and water, thanks to me.

Besides, I got to dress up a little bit, as was the code for the store. I didn't have a uniform, but I did have to dress professionally. It was nice; sometimes while getting dressed, I pretended I was going out with friends or going out to dinner with someone.

Yeah.

I peeled off my sweater leggings and sweatshirt and opted instead for a black pencil skirt and a flowy white blouse. I pulled the bun out of my hair, ripping a brush through it and decided to keep my glasses on. There. Acceptable.

Except I was colder now.

When the doctor told me it was anemia that made me so cold and pale- or rather, the lack of red blood cells carrying oxygen to my brain- I actually sighed in relief. Of course, he had given me some weird looks after that, but I had a _name_ for it. There was _actually_ something wrong me and my mom stopped accusing me of lying all the time. I had medication and iron vitamins that I took daily and it had definitely helped; I wasn't _as_ cold as I used to be.

But I was still cold.

Aside from being cold 24/7, it had other drawbacks as well. One being that if I didn't eat at certain times during the day, I'd get light headed from not only the lack of oxygen, but lack of nutrients and faint. There were monthly blood tests and transfusions at the hospital in Forks.

It was just annoying, really.

Satisfied with my appearance, I grabbed the car keys and called out to my family as I left. The drive to Makah wasn't very long, but it gave me time to think about all that had happened today.

Jared.

I didn't want to believe it was all a crazy prank, but what if it was? What if Paul and Jared had a plan to embarrass me in front of the whole school?

_Why would they do that?_ a small part of my mind asked.

Maybe they found out that I liked Jared? I thought.

That couldn't be, though. The only person who knew about my crush on Jared was Avenue, and to be honest, I didn't think she particularly cared too much to tell Jared.

_So then why?_ my mind asked again.

I wasn't sure, but I wasn't going to let myself think what I desperately, _desperately_ wanted to believe.

That Jared could possibly like me back.

I felt a bit better, now that I had convinced myself that it wasn't a prank, but still confused as to why he was talking to me. I got to work and clocked in, smiling at co-workers as I made my way down to my department.

The only girl I worked with, Jillian, was already there and she looked up at me as I slid behind the counter, smiling.

"How's it going?" she asked, leaning against the glass counter and smiled. Jill was like a supermodel, very thin and pretty, with the fashion sense to go along with it. I felt like a little girl playing dress up compared to her.

"Swell," I said sarcastically and she laughed as hard as Jared did when I used that word earlier this morning.

"Listen, my sister is Emily is coming to visit tonight. She just got engaged and she wants to show me her ring, so could you keep an eye out for her?"

"Sure," I said, looking around. It was kind of crowded tonight, although the customers were more concerned with clothing than jewelry. "What does she look like?"

"Oh," Jill said. She suddenly looked uncomfortable. She crossed her arms. "You'll- you'll know it's her. We sort of look alike."

I shrugged my shoulders. "Okay." I got out a duster to pass the time and went over to a tower of watches.

As I was dusting, I was acutely aware that someone was watching me. I looked around carefully, trying to see if it was someone hiding behind a clothing rack, or something, but I didn't see anyone. The feeling never left, though. As I spun around the tower of watches, I almost bumped into a customer.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," I said. "Do you need-"

And I stopped dead.

The customer, a curvy woman with golden skin, looked up. One side of her face was gorgeous, and very similar to Jill's, so I knew this must be Emily. But the other side was marred and scarred, angry red lines pulling her face down. Her mouth sagged a little. I understood suddenly why Jill looked uncomfortable before.

"Hi," she said and it was odd to see only one side of her mouth move. "I was just looking. Sorry if I messed anything up."

She reached up to straighten out a watch. I shook myself.

"Oh no, you didn't, it's okay. Did you need help with anything?"

"Uh, well yeah, actually. My sister works here- at least, I'm almost positive she does- but I don't know what department- maybe you know her? Her name is-"

"Jill," I said smiling and she smiled back at me. "She told me you were coming in. She works over here, actually."

"Emily!" Jill squealed and they hugged each other, laughing. Apparently, they hadn't seen each other in a while, so I let them catch up as I continued dusting. When I was finished, I came back around slowly, letting them have their time. Emily was asking about Claire, Jill's daughter and then the topic changed.

"-always has the guys over. Paul, Jared and Embry eat _everything-_"

I froze.

Jared.

How did this woman know Jared? Sure, Jared was a common name, but paired with Paul and Embry? Paul was a pretty common name too, but Paul was Jared's best friend and Embry _certainly_ was not a common name.

"I'm sorry," I said, interrupting her. They looked at me in surprise, probably forgotten that I was there. It was easy, I guess. "But did you just say Jared? As in Jared _Cameron_?"

Emily blinked. "Yeah, I-"

Her eyes traveled down to my nametag where _Kimber_ was neatly printed and her eyes went wide.

"Oh. My. God. You're Kim! _The _Kim!"

I glanced at Jill, my heart racing, but she only shrugged.

"Er- yeah, that'd be me. I guess."

She pulled me into a hug then, squeezing me hard. Her demeanor suddenly changed, and I felt like my mom was hugging me, the way she used to hug me before things got shitty at home. Embarrassingly, I felt tears well up in my eyes and I hoped that my glasses would hide the fact that I was crying.

"Oh, it's so nice to meet you! Jared's told me so much about you!"

_Jared's told me so much about you._

"He has?" I asked. "When? How?"

"Oh, today! He's still at my house, actually. He's friends with Sam. My fiancé," she added, wiggling her fingers. I saw a small, modest but still very pretty ring on her left finger and my heart contracted.

"Congratulations," I told her. _Emily's at 6!_ Isn't that what Paul had told Jared this afternoon? It felt like ages ago, weeks maybe, but it had only been a couple of hours.

"Who's Jared?" Jill asked, nudging my side. "Your boyfriend?"

"No!" I shouted, jumping away from her. They both gave me weird looks, and in Emily's case, it was sad. "He's- I don't even know what he is, he just started talking to me today-"

I was so flustered.

What was wrong with me? I couldn't even speak coherently.

All I knew as that Jared was _talking _about me. _Me._ To people, his best friend.

_Me._

Me, who was almost seventeen years old and had been in love with him for over a year now. Me, who had never had a kiss or a boyfriend, or even a best friend to talk about these things with. My stomach was churning, but I wasn't sure if it was a good feeling or a bad feeling. I tucked my hands under my armpits, because the cold was getting to me. Emily noticed.

"Are you okay?" she asked, stepping forward and placing a hand on my shoulder. I nodded quickly, moving out of her grasp.

"Yeah, I'm fine- I'm just cold is all."

She nodded, looking thoughtful and then clapped her hands together once. "Well, I should probably get going," she said. "before the boys eat everything in my house." She gave a tired sort of laugh, almost sort of like a mother would laugh over her children. "It was nice to meet you, Kim." Her eyes sparkled. "I'm sure I'll be seeing you around soon."

"Um. Sure, I guess?" I hadn't meant for it to come out like a question, but it just did. Emily winked at me, kissed Jill on the cheek and left.

Jill was eyeing me.

"Okay," she said, pulling me by my shoulders and steering me to a chair. "Now you _have_ to tell me everything."

* * *

><p>The house was dark and silent when I walked in later that night. I dropped my keys on the counter then picked them up after thinking twice. I would be the one driving to school tomorrow.<p>

In my room, I undressed and slipped on a big shirt that had once been my father's.

I didn't know my father, having only met him once or twice with Dean when we were little. My mom had been cleaning stuff out from the attic and had found a couple of his things in a box which she had thrown away without any hesitation.

I went back and got everything when she wasn't looking and washed the shirt twice. I found a couple of old records, and a few movie stubs but that was it. It was all I had of the person who had donated half of my DNA and then never wanted anything to do with me or Dean ever again.

I shouldn't have wanted to meet someone or wanted to love someone who had given me up like I wasn't their child. But I did. And very badly.

Dean didn't. Dean had told me long ago that if our father ever came around, he'd likely beat the shit out of him for leaving Mom in the mess he did. But I think the only reason why he said that was to hide the fact that he wanted a dad too.

All of us did.

I set my alarm clock, making sure that it was set properly and on loud, so that I wouldn't miss it in the morning. I turned down my bed sheets and climbed in, taking my glasses off in the process. I was exhausted; emotionally, physically and mentally. What a long day. And I was freezing.

It was then, laying there in the quiet house that I realized my mother hadn't noticed that two of her children were bruised and the other two weren't speaking.


	5. Chapter Four

**AN:** Hello, my darling readers. I am here with another chapter and- _guess what_! I've got a beta! And she's fabulous, her name is **alicecullenisrealinmyworld** and she's just awesome. Thanks so much, girl! 3 Anyways, I hope you guys like this chapter- I really like the way I'm going with this story, and I'm actually in the process of writing chapter eleven as we speak...so hopefully I'll have regular updates soon! Just trying to get school settled and everything else that comes with 'being an adult' (it's really not all that great, let me tell ya.). So, please tell me what you think in a review! xoxo

* * *

><p>I was actually on time for school the next morning.<p>

I'd paused outside my classroom, taking a deep breath and trying to calm my nerves. What if yesterday was just a one-time deal and Jared didn't talk to me ever again? My heart hurt just thinking about it, so I peeked inside the classroom to see if he was already there.

"Looking for someone?" a voice said. It was so close that my hair fluttered from the breath. It was hot and I shivered as I spun around.

And my heart relaxed when I saw that it was Jared.

"Who were you looking for?" he asked, that small smile playing around his lips. I flushed and shivered again. His hair was wet, like he had just gotten out of the shower. My thoughts _totally_ needed to stay out of that direction, or school would be very interesting indeed.

"The- the teacher," I stammered. "I was just seeing…if the…teacher-"

Jared's smile grew. He held out his arm and beckoned me into the class. "After you."

Still red in the face, I sat down at my seat and kept my head low but eyes up as he sat down in the desk beside me. He looked at me expectantly.

"Do you have your books and writing utensils today?" he asked smugly. This time I rolled my eyes and pulled out my notebook and pen. He grinned at me and my heart went into overdrive.

How could a single person make my body react this way? It was completely involuntary, I couldn't help any of this- so why did it happen?

"So I heard you met Emily last night," he said, leaning back in his desk. "I didn't know you worked there."

"There's a lot of things you don't know about me," I reminded him, and as soon as I said it, I regretted it. Jared frowned, then leaned forward so his mouth was by my ear again.

"I'd like to change that," he said sincerely, then pulled away just a bit to look me straight in the eye.

I couldn't breathe.

"So how long have you worked there?" he asked casually, as if he hadn't just messed up my equilibrium, or make my senses go haywire. I cleared my throat.

"Almost a year."

He looked impressed. "Do you like it?"

I shrugged and picked up my pencil to scratch out a small doodle on the cover of my notebook. "Yeah, it's all right."

"But not your dream job," he pushed. I shrugged again.

"Who's dream job is to be a sales associate in a department store?" I laughed humorlessly, because at this point- I just wanted to keep my job so I had something to contribute to the house. My family. My face turned red.

Jared nodded, but stayed quiet as the teacher walked into the room. I forced myself to pay very close attention for the whole period, trying hard not to glance at Jared who's entire focus seemed to be on _me_. For reasons unknown.

When the bell rang, Jared stood and waited while I put my notebook and things away. He smiled at me when I looked up and I smiled hesitantly back.

"Ready?" he asked as we walked out of the classroom.

"For what?" I asked. My heart jumped a bit.

"For your next class, silly," he said, rolling his eyes.

"You're going to walk me to my next class?" I deadpanned. He laughed _and put his arm around me again_. "Why not?"

I shrugged, but all I wanted to do was curl into his side and absorb his warmth and just breathe in his scent. His hand rubbed my arm.

"Jeez, Kim," he said, rubbing faster as to create friction. "You're freezing! Just like a-" He stopped short and I felt his body tremble. I looked up at him.

"Just like a what?"

"An ice cube," he said quietly and looked back down at me. "You're like an ice cube. Are you sick?"

"I-" This was difficult. I didn't want to tell him that I didn't feel so cold when I was around him, but when he left, it overtook my whole body, leaving me colder than ever before. I wanted to tell him about my anemia, but I was hesitant; I didn't think he'd care. He nudged me and I made a decision.

"Yes," I said quietly. "I am. But I'm going to be-"

Jared stopped us, right in the middle of the hallway and the people behind us swore, and went around, giving us dirty looks. Jared looked stricken.

"You're sick?" he asked, grabbing my shoulders. "How sick? Is it life threatening? Is it just a cold or-"

"Jared," I said, stepping back. "You're freaking me out a little."

"I'm-" He ran a hand through his hair and sighed, letting me go and stepping back. "Sorry. I'm just-" He stopped again.

"You're just _what_?"

"Worried about you," he admitted. My heart could have flown down the hall way at his words.

"Why?"

"I don't know," he said. He looked pained. "Tell me what's wrong. Why are you sick?"

"I have anemia," I told him and I started walking down the hallway again, wishing he'd put his arm around me again to make me feel less cold. "I don't have enough red blood cells in my body, so not enough oxygen is sent to my brain. It makes me cold."

"Are you always cold?" he asked me quietly and I nodded.

"Pretty much. All day, every day. Summer, winter- it doesn't matter." I gave another humorless laugh. "I'm always cold."

Except when you touch me.

I didn't speak the words out loud, but I may as well have because Jared suddenly tugged on my arm and pulled me into a tight hug; a hug that I'd been waiting for practically my whole life because wrapped in his arms, I wasn't cold.

I was warm.

It was like someone had doused me with hot, scalding hot water, and I shivered from it. I buried my nose in his shirt and inhaled deeply, intoxicated by his scent.

"It's a good thing I run at a high temperature then," he murmured into my hair.

The bell rang and I pulled myself away. His face was flushed a little, and my stomach tightened. Did _I _make him blush? How? Why? I tried not to smile, but I couldn't help it. I grinned at him. He grinned back.

He put his arm back around me and walked me to my next class.

In which I paid no attention, other than the fact that Paul was smirking at me the entire time.

I didn't care.

* * *

><p>"Avenue," I yelled, my voice on the edge of a squeak. "You're <em>never<em> going to believe me when I tell you what has happened!"

She smiled a little impatiently at me as she closed her locker. "Go ahead."

"Jared," I exploded. "He-he- I don't even _know_ what's going on, but he's talking to me, he put his arm around me and _hugged _me- I don't- I don't get it, I don't understand it but-"

The way she was looking at me made the smile drip off my face like water and I stopped. "What? You- you still think he's playing a pr-prank on me?"

And the fear was back full force.

Was I seriously so stupid to think that maybe Jared Cameron could like someone like me, or was that just low self-esteem talking?

"Oh my God," I whispered. Tears pricked at my eyes. "What-what if he really is, Avenue?"

She shrugged, in a smug sort of way. "I don't know, Kim. I tried telling you before-"

"I think I'm going to throw up," I admitted and I walked away from her. A friend was supposed to tell you it was going to be okay, even if it wasn't exactly true. I'd never had a friend to do that with, but I'd seen it in the movies, and I wished Avenue was like that for me.

I power walked to the lobby where I waited for Dean and tried to get my stomach under control. My hands were aching from the cold and I shoved them in my sweater pockets.

I didn't think I could handle it if Jared and Paul were pranking me.

"Kim."

I spun around and came face to face- or face to chest, if you wanted to get technical- with Paul.

I swallowed heavily. "Hey."

"How's it going?" he asked me, with that smirk. He always seemed to have it on when he looked at me, he could never just smile.

I took a shuddering breath and shrugged. "I don't know."

He frowned. "What's wrong?"

"Lots of things," I admitted to him. I took a deep breath. "If I ask you a question, could you answer me honestly?"

It was worth a shot. Paul crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes.

"Ask your question and I can tell you."

"Why is Jared talking to me?"

Paul's arms dropped to his sides and he raised a hand to wipe at his face, suddenly looking tired. He hesitated. "I can't answer that."

My heart clenched and my stomach rolled.

"Can I ask another question?"

He nodded.

"Is this all a joke?" I whispered.

He gave me a funny look. "A joke?"

I nodded and he shook his head.

"I'm confused."

"A joke," I repeated. "Someone- someone must have said something-"

"Said what, Kim?" he asked.

I swallowed again and the tears were back and I tried really hard not to let them fall because that'd be just _pathetic_, to cry in front of Paul of all people.

"That I like Jared," I whispered. "And- and now he's talking to me because you guys- you think it's funny-"

But Paul was shaking his head, looking outraged.

"Did someone tell you that?" he asked angrily, grabbing me by my shoulders. "Did someone tell you that Jared was doing this to _hurt_ you?"

He looked seriously pissed off. I shook my head.

"No- no, but it just doesn't make _sense_, Paul, why he's talking to me now when- I mean, I've sat next to him all year and now-"

Paul shook his head again and then he did the strangest thing, something that I would never expected him to do.

He hugged me.

And he was just as hot as Jared, and it engulfed me although it just didn't quite give me the same feeling as when Jared hugged me.

"Holy shit, Kim, you're freezing," he complained and pulled back, eyeing me warily. I rolled my eyes.

"Tell me something I don't know."

He raised an eyebrow.

"Do you really want me to answer that question?"

I shrugged. He leaned forward so his breath was like a ghost across the skin of my ear and I shivered.

"Jared is not messing with you, Kim. He's serious. Believe me, I would know- better than anyone. Don't- don't think he's just joking around with you, he's not. I promise."

"I just-" It was still difficult to speak so I just shook my head.

"Kim," he said quietly, pulling away and looking me in the eye. They were a light hazel. "Tell Jared."

"Tell him what?" I asked.

He smiled this time, really smiled and you know? Paul was really handsome. Remember how I said that Jared was beautiful? Paul was handsome. It warmed my insides.

"Tell him you like him. I guarantee you that you will not be upset by his response."

He smirked again, _kissed my cheek_ and then left, the door shutting behind him.

Shit was just getting weirder and weirder with each passing day.

It hit me then.

Paul's answer left me breathless. Literally breathless and I gasped trying to force _some_ oxygen to my brain. My heart was pounding. Hyperventilating. I was hyperventilating.

I was still breathing hard when Dean came around the corner. When he saw me standing there, he rushed to my side.

"Kim," he said and touched my forehead with his palm, feeling for a temperature. This had happened often enough that he knew exactly what he was doing. "What's wrong? Have you eaten today?"

"Yes," I gasped and I grabbed his shirt. "Dean, I can't breathe-"

"Kim?"

And there was that melodic voice that wafted through the air, settling in my eardrums and instantly my heart stopped pounding like I'd just finished a marathon. I still felt light headed, but I stopped breathing so hard.

Jared.

"What's wrong?" he asked worriedly. "Are- are you okay?"

"I'm okay," I said, nodding to Dean. He still looked worried and he placed both hands on my face, gently pulling the skin beneath my eyes to look into my tear ducts, but I pushed him away.

"You're pale," he told me. "Paler than usual. Have you been-"

"Dean," I hissed and now I was embarrassed. "I'm okay."

"You look like you're about to pass out," he told me. Jared was wringing his hands behind him, looking more worried than my brother. "Are you taking your medication?"

"Yes," I groaned, pushing his hands away. "Drop it, I'm okay."

"Why were you hyperventilating?" he asked me suspiciously. My face grew red and I avoided Jared's stare.

"I don't know."

Dean's eyes shot to Jared who still looked worried.

"Is it your anemia?" he asked, stepping forward. I could already feel his heat and if he continued to come any closer, I couldn't be held responsible if I threw myself at him and tried to suck his heat away.

Dean glared at him, turning to face him.

"What's it to you, Cameron?"

I knew that voice. That was the _I'm the man of the house_ voice; the voice he used when bill collectors came knocking at our door, or when our mother and her ex-boyfriend got into a fight.

That was the _don't fuck with me_ voice.

Shit.

Jared's face was one of surprise when I stepped in front of him and face my twin. He was still glaring at Jared.

"I'm okay," I told him. "See? Just- just got a little light headed, is all. It's been a long day. C'mon, let's go home, the girls will be getting off the bus soon and-"

"I'm driving," Dean said sternly, his eyes shooting back to me. I nodded and handed over the keys, glancing at Jared over my shoulder. He shrugged.

"Are you okay?"

I nodded but Dean pushed me away.

"Why do you wanna know, man?"

Jared put his hands up. "Hey, man, I'm not trying to start shit-"

"You better not be trying to start shit," Dean said indignantly. "Because I'll be the one to end it!" He took a step closer; I pushed him back, though, because- let's be honest.

Jared could squash Dean like a bug if he wanted to.

"Dean," I snapped. "Let's go!"

Dean shrugged his jacket back on his shoulders and marched out of the building. I turned to say something to Jared- something, anything, an apology, _something_, but Dean grabbed me by the arm.

"Let's go, Kim!"

We walked quickly out of the school and into the parking lot, dodging moving and parked cars.

"Dean," I started to say but he interrupted me.

"Why is Jared Cameron suddenly so interested in you, Kim?"

I blinked. Dean wasn't exactly the over-protective brother type. At all. He was just normally defensive, but not over-protective.

"I don't know, but he was just asking how I was-"

We'd reached the car and Dean suddenly slammed his fists on the roof, making a slight dent and scaring the _shit_ out of me.

"_Dean!"_

"He's not a good guy, Kim," he said angrily. "D'you see the effin _size_ of him?"

Did I ever.

"What does that have to do with _anything_-"

"He's been hanging around Sam Uley," he said, unlocking the car. I threw my bag in the backseat and clambered in beside him.

"Sam Uley?" I repeated. He nodded and started the car.

"Yeah. You know, the new guy on the council? He's getting married to the Emily girl from the Makah reservation? She was all over the news last year for getting attacked by that bear-"

Emily. Jill's sister. Things were starting to make a little sense.

Only a little.

"What's so bad about him?"

"The council practically worships the ground the guy walks on, but I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him. All the guys he's been starting to hang around- they were all normal kids, Kim," he said, pulling quickly out of the parking lot. "And then _boom_- instant muscles and they all _look_ alike." He gave me a pointed look. "It's not normal."

"So what are you saying?" I felt so lost.

"I think it's a- a cult or something," Dean said. "With drugs or steroids or some shit-"

"No way," I protested. "That's- that's-"

I was going to say ridiculous…but was it really?

I didn't want to believe that, not even for a second.

"Think about it," Dean said. "Paul and Jared were both gone for, what, like two weeks? Jared used to be _tiny_ compared to how he is now. Two weeks, Kim. Face it," he added, glancing at me. "He's a weird guy. All of them are. Paul and Embry, too."

Suddenly, we were home and parked behind our mother's car in the driveway. My mind was still reeling.

"Paul's a good guy," I whispered. Dean snorted.

"Good guy? He's got to be about the angriest person I've ever seen. He's dangerous." He turned to look at me. Confined in the car, it was quiet and his words were very loud, though I don't think he was trying to make them so. "I'm serious. You should stay away from him."

I didn't say anything. I stared at my hands. Cold, as always.

"Kim?"

I looked up to see him raising an eyebrow at me.

"You _are_ going to stop talking to them, right?"

My chest hurt.

"I like him," I whispered. Dean groaned, letting his head drop down to the steering wheel. "Jared. I really like him and- and I think- I think that…maybe he likes me too." It was such a shot in the dark, but what else could Paul possibly be talking about?

_I guarantee you that you will not be upset by his response._

"But you _don't know_ him," he said, stressing his words.

"Well…neither do you."

He sighed and our conversation ended as Maqahla and Raven's bus pulled up behind us.

"Oh yeah," he asked as we got out of the car. "Why is it that the girls have black eyes and busted lips?"

They ran off the bus, their bruises more vibrant in the natural light.

"They got into a fight on the bus yesterday," I said, smiling down at Raven, who grinned up at me. "But they're tough. They fought back."


	6. Chapter Five

**AN**: Hello ladies and gents. I had accidentally sent this to my beta **(alicecullenisrealinmyworld)** before I had sent the last chapter, so it's all ready for you to read! Just a quick note before you read, if you haven't skipped this part already is that Maqahla and Raven are based off of my sisters Emily and Riley. Emily is 8 and is Maqahla and Riley is six and is Raven. These conversations and arguments that Kim has with them and that they have with each other- they are _so_ totally real, it's not even funny. Sometimes I scare myself with out perfectly I get their personalities down. If they knew I was writing about them, this whole story would be rewritten and it'd be all about Maqahla and Raven! Seriously, I love them- they're so cute but they bicker back and forth all the time, even though they're each other's best friends and I just love them to bits. Other than that, any other character has just been formulated in my mind. SO! Just keep that in mind. (: Anyways enough of this long rambling, thank you to my beta for being fabulous, as always, and please review at the end and tell me what you think!

* * *

><p>I was already showered and almost ready for bed when the phone rang.<p>

"The fuck is calling so damn late at night!" Dean shouted from his bedroom. I rolled my eyes and ran into the living room to grab the phone.

"Hello?"

"Kim?" It was Avenue and she sounded upset; her voice was shaking. "I'm sorry I'm calling so late. I…" She paused and let out a dry sob.

"Are you okay?" I asked her. She sniffed again.

"No. Could you- do you think you could come pick me up? Could I spend the night at your house?"

"I-" It wasn't _too_ late; it was only nine, but the girls were already in bed, Mom was gone and Dean was still pissed off at me. I sighed. "Sure. Yeah. I'll be over in a little while."

"Thanks, Kim."

I hung up the phone and then knocked on Dean's door.

"Dean?"

"What?" he snapped. I pushed open the door. He was lying on his bed, and staring at the ceiling while playing some Beatles song on his guitar. He rolled his eyes to me. "What do you want?"

"I'm going over to Avenue's," I told him. "And she's sleeping over."

He shrugged and his eyes went back to the ceiling. "Why are you telling me?"

I frowned. "I just thought I'd let you know I was taking the car and that the girls-"

"There isn't enough gas in the car to go all the way to First Beach."

My jaw dropped. "Why didn't you get gas after you went out to eat?"

He shrugged. "Didn't feel like it."

"Dean!"

"What?" he snapped back. "Jesus Christ, Kim, just fucking walk! Stop nagging the shit out of me!"

"What the hell is your problem?" I shouted at him. He was like a girl, PMSing and it was starting to get old.

"Nothing, just-fucking _stop talking _and close the door on your way out."

I slammed it shut and when I turned around, Maqahla and Raven were staring at me, wide eyed. Raven had half her face hidden behind her blanket.

"Why are you and Dean fighting?" Maqahla asked. I rolled my eyes and ruffled their hair.

"Because that's what brothers and sisters do."

"You don't fight with me or Raven."

"That's because you're little," I told her and picked Raven up, holding her on my hip. "C'mon, let's get you guys to bed."

"I'm not little," Maqahla protested.

"Me neither," Raven piped up. "I'm almost as tall as Maqahla!"

"_No_ you're not!"

"Yes I am!"

"_No_!"

"_Yes_!"

"All _right_, you guys," I said, trying to end the argument. I tossed Raven onto the bed and she giggled as Maqahla grumbled, crawling after her. I cracked their window open to let in some fresh air. At least it was warm out. I turned back around, giving them stern looks.

"You have to go to bed now, okay? I'm leaving and-"

"Wait!"

"Where are you going?'

"Can I go with you?"

"No, _I_ wanna go!"

"You _always_ get to go!"

"_No_!"

"_Yes_!"

"Guys!" I said exasperatedly. "Neither one of you are coming with me! I'm going to go pick up Avenue and she's spending the night here. I'll be right back. You're going to stay here with Dean and go to sleep! It's bedtime!"

They groaned, but allowed me to kiss them on their foreheads and then snuggled up to each other, closing their eyes.

Funny how they could fight and then love each other in the next second. All Dean had been lately was mean and nasty to me.

I closed their door behind me, and then went back to my room to grab a fleece jacket and put shoes on. I wondered what could possibly be bothering Avenue at this hour that she had to call me to come get her. This was new and different for me. I wasn't sure how to feel.

Avenue lived over by First Beach. It took me about twenty minutes to walk to her house and when I arrived, I noticed that all the lights were on and the front door was wide open. Her parents' car wasn't there, but instead, there wasa black pickup truck sitting out front.

I walked slowly up to her house, and then paused as something smashed loudly inside. What the hell was going on?

"NO! Stop it!"

There was another loud crash from inside and I sprinted into the house. I hadn't been there in ages, but it didn't look any different.

Except…in the hallway, there was glass and it was everywhere, shattered into a tiny million, reflective pieces.

Except it wasn't glass; it had been a large mirror, and it used to hang in the hallway in front of Avenue's room. I spun around, looking into her room to see a man standing above Avenue. She was on her bed, tears streaming down her face.

"Stop it!"

"Why were you fucking talking to him! Tell me!"

"I wasn't, I swear!"

"I saw the text messages, you stupid bitch! Tell me!"

"Leave me alone!"

"Avenue!" I shouted and the man jumped back. I recognized him vaguely from school; his name was Keith.

"Who the fuck are you?" he snarled at me. "Get out of here!"

"Up yours, asshole," I shouted at him and stalked by him to grab Avenue's hand. She was shaking like a leaf and I knew that my cold hands weren't helping her any. "Who the hell do you think you are?"

"Her boyfriend," he snapped, trying to reach around me to get to her. "And she's fucking cheating on me-"

"Get over yourself," I shouted and pushed Avenue out into the hallway. "You're a pathetic loser! I'm calling the cops!"

"Fuck the police!" he shouted and I slammed the door shut in his face, holding the doorknob tight with my hands. On the other side, he roared.

"Grab the phone!" I shouted at Avenue. The door banged violently and my whole body shook from the force.

He was going to break down the door.

"Avenue!"

"I'm calling!"

It wasn't technically the _police_, per se; there weren't any police officers on the reservation, just men that the council had appointed to break things up, if something of this nature were to happen.

Which wasn't often. So I hoped they answered.

The door shook violently again and I could hear Avenue crying into the phone.

"Avenue!" I shouted; I heard a cracking from the door and a vicious growl from the still unknown man inside. "Run!"

I waited until I heard her footsteps fall before I counted to three in my head and then I booked it. I could hear his heavy footsteps behind me and I ran quickly, down the porch steps and followed Avenue who was half way down the road.

"Avenue!" I shouted, sprinting after her. Her long curly hair was blowing behind her and I could hear her sobbing. "Stop, Av, wait a second!"

She did, her shoulders shaking heavily. I grabbed her and hugged her hard, as she sobbed into my shoulder.

"What the hell happened?" I asked her breathlessly. "Why is _Keith_ of all people-"

"My- my boyfr-friend," she sobbed harder. "Kim-"

"It's okay," I said. Looking around to make sure that there was no one, I pulled her into the woods, staying on the edge. We both jumped as Keith screamed in rage on the front porch, kicking down one of the posts holding up the railing. I had my arms around Avenue as she shook silently.

The next thing I knew, I was being grabbed around the middle.

The scream built up in my throat and had just managed to escape when a hot hand slipped over my mouth, muffling me.

"Shhhh," Jared's voice breathed in my ear. To my right, Avenue was in a similar position, but it was Paul who was whispering in her ear. She looked at me, her eyes wide and scared. I nodded at her.

"The Forks police are on their way over," he whispered in my ear. "Just stay quiet."

"Avenue!" Keith was screaming now and kicking out. He dented the side of his truck and sent a garbage can flying. Avenue whimpered in Paul's hand. "Avenue! Get your ass back over here!"

I shivered in Jared's arms and- discreetly- I tried moving in closer.

Jared held onto me more tightly.

"Avenue!" Keith screamed again and then dropped to his knees in the middle of the road and cried into his hands. Avenue whimpered again. Paul tightened his grip on her because she looked like she was going to bolt at any second.

Something was seriously wrong with this Keith guy.

A black police car with flashing lights drove by us just then and stopped in front of Keith. Jared and Paul pulled us closer into the woods. I turned my body towards Jared and whispered in his ear.

"Shouldn't Avenue go talk to him?"

Jared shook his head. "No, Billy's got it taken care of."

I frowned at him. "Billy?"

"Black," he told me and I nodded. He was our head of the council. "He's best friends with Charlie, he's the Chief of police in Forks. Just let him get Keith cuffed and in the car."

I nodded again and suddenly- Jared and I were face to face, chest to chest and _I wasn't cold_. It was such a strange feeling- a _great_ feeling- and Jared smiled at me.

"You're not cold," he said a little triumphantly. Like he could read my thoughts. I smiled back at him.

"Jared," Paul hissed at him and slapped his arm, giving him a dirty look. Avenue's tears were an endless stream over Paul's hand. He nodded grimly over to Charlie and Keith, who was handcuffing him and stuffing him into the police car.

When he was done, Charlie faced the woods where we were hiding and Jared put his voice close to my ear again.

"Hang onto her, okay? We'll be right back."

Paul handed Avenue off to me and I wrapped my arms around her again.

"What's going to happen to him?" Avenue croaked after a few minutes. We watched silently as Officer Swan talked to Jared and Paul, gesturing with his hands and then he pulled out a cell phone. Jared turned around and beckoned to me.

"C'mon, Avenue," I murmured, pulling her gently.

We walked out of the woods to where the police car was. I could see the back of Keith's head bowed and his shoulders still shaking in the back of the car. Officer Swan shut his cell phone and looked at Avenue sadly.

"You all right, kid?"

She nodded, crossing her arms tightly.

"Want to tell me what happened?" he asked her gently. I nodded encouragingly at her and she walked a short distance with Officer Swan. I tried to avoid looking in the police car.

"Are you okay?" Jared asked me.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Not too sure about her, though."

"What happened?"

"She just called me and asked me to come get her."

"Where's your car?" Paul asked me.

"I walked," I said. Jared's eyes practically bugged out of his head.

"You _what_?"

I glanced at Paul. "I walked here?"

"At night? Alone? By yourself?"

"Alone and by yourself mean the same thing, you moron," Paul said, snickering. Jared ignored him, still staring at me.

"Where's your car?" he asked me anxiously.

"It didn't have gas," I said exasperatedly. "Because my shit brother was too lazy to get to the station after he went out with his friends."

Jared sighed, rubbing his face angrily.

"All right, Kim- listen. These woods- they're not safe. You should really stay out of them."

"Unless we're around," Paul chimed in.

"What do you mean?" I frowned.

They exchanged glances.

"We'll tell you some other time," Paul promised.

"What isn't safe about them?"

"Another time," Jared repeated waving his hand. "Just stay out of the woods. Please?" He blinked his eyes and he looked so _innocent_ and _sexy_ and just. Sigh. How could I have said no? I gulped.

"Sure."

He let out a sigh of relief. "Thanks."

"What are you guys doing out here, anyways?" I asked, clearing my throat. "How did you know where we were?"

"Billy called us," Paul said, jamming his hands into his pockets.

"We do the patrol around here," Jared said to my questioning stare. I was surprised.

"Oh."

Officer Swan came back over alone and clapped Jared on his shoulder.

"Thanks for the call, guys." He turned to me. "You can bring her home now, if you'd like. I called her parents and they're on their way back."

I nodded.

"What's going to happen to him?" Jared asked, nodding towards the car. I'd forgotten that Keith was even here.

"Well, we'll hold him over night, but this is his first offense and he didn't hurt her, so we technically have to let him go. But I suggested to Avenue and her parents when I spoke with them on the phone that they should file for a restraining order."

Made sense. Officer Swan shook both Jared and Paul's hand, nodded to me and then got in his car and drove away. Avenue was holding herself and hadn't moved since Officer Swan had brought her away. I walked over to her.

"What do you want to do?" I asked her. "You could still sleepover if you want."

She wiped her eyes and shook her head. "I told my mom I'd stay."

"What happened anyway?"

Her face flushed slightly, though her demeanor never changed. "He saw some guy's number in my phone…and he freaked out."

I frowned. "You weren't really cheating on him, were you?"

She shook her head. "No. He just doesn't trust me."

I shrugged. "Guess you won't have to worry about that anymore, right?"

She gave me a tight smile. "Thanks for your help, Kim."

I gave her a hug. It felt awkward. "No problem."

She looked over my shoulder at Jared and Paul. "Um. Thanks."

They shrugged back. "Don't mention it."

Avenue's parents pulled up then and her mother shot out of the car. I backed away slowly, waving goodbye.

Suddenly, I was exhausted.

"Can I walk you home?" Jared asked me quietly when I'd made my way back over.

"I thought you said it wasn't safe to walk alone," I said teasingly.

"Well you won't be alone," he shot back with a smile. "You'll be with me."

Words have never sounded better.

Paul gave a smug cough before backing away slowly. "I'll see you later, man."

"See ya."

I looked over my shoulder to see Avenue's mom hugging her fiercely and her dad picking up the kicked garbage can.

"Ready?" Jared asked. He smiled at me, while butterflies assaulted my stomach. I nodded and we started walking back.


	7. Chapter Six

**AN:** Helloooo. It's almost nine in the morning and I'm so tired. I was planning on submitting this yesterday morning, but things just got in the way (yay for ten hour shifts at work...sense my sarcasm?). Thanks to **alicecullenisrealinmyworld** for beta'ing (: She's a doll, folks! Anyhoo, please enjoy and review and the end! Tell me what you think!

* * *

><p>"So, how long have you and Avenue been best friends?" Jared asked.<p>

I gave him a weird look. "We're not."

"You're not what?"

"Best friends," I said and shoved my hands into my back pockets.

"Oh," he said, frowning. "Well, then why did you go to her?"

Hm. "She called me, asking to pick her up. I didn't really think about it. I just did it."

"And would she do the same for you?" he prompted me, like he already knew the answer. "If you needed help, would she help you?"

That was a loaded question. "Oh," I said and thought for a second. "Um."

Would she?

"No, probably not," I said after a minute. "But then again, she wouldn't be the first person I'd call for help either."

"Who would be?" he asked when I said it out loud. My face turned red.

"You," I mumbled under my breath. I sincerely hoped he hadn't heard me, but he just laughed and threw his arm around me, hugging me to his side. My body vibrated in excitement as I was engulfed in his heat once more.

"I'm glad," he said after a minute.

"Why?" I whispered. I felt him inhale.

"I want you to feel safe around me," he said. "Always."

It took me a minute to process what he said. I looked up at him and was briefly overcome by his scent. It clogged my mind until I gave myself a little shake.

"I do," I said.

"Good," replied back and hugged me tighter.

We came to a break in the road, and I realized then that we were standing in front of my house.

The car was missing. Dean's bedroom light was off.

"Oh my god," I said, stopping short.

"What's wrong?"

"My car," I said, looking around frantically. "It's gone- Dean, he's gone!"

"I'm sure he'll be back-"

"No, you don't understand," I said, rushing across the street. "My little sisters are home alone!"

The front door was left unlocked.

I barely noticed that Jared was running behind me as I ran down the hallway. I threw the girls' bedroom door open, and the feeling of wanting to vomit got stronger-

But they were still in the exact same position they'd been in when I'd left. Snuggled up together.

I breathed a sigh of relief, closing the door and then turned-right into Jared's rock hard chest.

"Whoa," he whispered, reaching out to steady me. "Sorry."

"It's okay," I whispered- or almost croaked, actually. He followed me into the living room and I sat tiredly down on the couch. He sat down beside me, but with space between us. Enough space that I couldn't feel his heat.

"I can't believe him," I said furiously.

"Dean?"

"Yes! He just left the girls home alone! And the door unlocked! He said there wasn't any gas left in the car, I bet he just lied so he could go out when I left."

I felt like crying. I could feel Jared staring at me.

"Kim?" he asked timidly.

"Sorry," I mumbled, wiping my eyes. "My darling twin brother and I haven't been getting along lately."

"I could tell," he said. "But, um…where're your parents?"

"Ahh," I said and laced my fingers together. The moment of truth.

Sensing my hesitation, Jared scrambled for words. "If it's personal," he said quickly. "You don't have to tell me, I don't mean to pry-"

"You're not," I told him. "It's okay. Really."

He nodded, waiting patiently.

"My mom's at work," I said. "She works nights at a diner in Forks." He nodded again. "And- I, uh, I don't know…exactly _where _my dad is."

"As in, you don't know where he is right now…or-" he paused. "Or you don't know where he is period?"

I gave him a small smile. "Period."

"I'm sorry," he said.

"We manage," I reassured him. "But it's more difficult having a flighty brother who acts like he doesn't give a shit about his family."

"Who's older?" he asked.

"He is," I said, rolling my eyes. "By four minutes. And he never lets me forget it, either."

He laughed and leaned back on the sofa.

I realized with a sharp jolt that Jared Cameron was in my house.

_Jared Cameron._

Sitting in my living room.

My stomach churned and my eyes did a quick sweep of the house. The living room was a wreck; there was a pile of half folded laundry on the other side of Jared; the girls' toys were sprawled everywhere. Dean hadn't cleaned up the dinner dishes. I could tell- they were sitting on the coffee table, in front of the TV where the girls _weren't_ supposed to be sitting. I groaned internally and hoped that Jared hadn't seen it.

Of course he'd seen it. He didn't seem to care, though. He was just looking at me. I shifted.

"What?" I asked nervously.

He shrugged. "I wish I knew more about you."

My heart jumped.

"All I know about you are three things," he held up his hand and began ticking off his fingers. "You have three siblings and you're anemic."

"What's the third thing?" I asked, feeling more nervous than before.

"You're beautiful."

The butterflies that had been assaulting my stomach before were now trying to rip my insides apart with millions of tiny claws.

"You don't mean that," I whispered.

"Why would I say it then, if I didn't mean it?" he asked me quietly. I looked down, shrugging and afraid to open my mouth.

Jared moved closer, eliminating the space between us. Our thighs touched as he settled beside me and I was once again encompassed by the warmth that rolled off of him in an endless wave. He tilted my head up by my chin.

I nearly fainted.

"You are beautiful," he whispered. "Anyone who tells you differently is absolutely blind."

And the impossible was happening- Jared was leaning forward and my eyes fluttered shut, my stomach and heart the main acts of a circus show that was going on internally.

"Kimmy?"

I jumped away from Jared, my heart pounding.

Raven was rubbing her eyes sleepily, with streaming tears.

"What's wrong?" I asked, trying to catch my breath. I was partly annoyed, partly disappointed, and partly grateful.

Grateful because if Jared was going to kiss me, I didn't know what I would do.

What if I messed up?

"I had a bad dream," she whimpered and sniffled, then ran into my arms, wrapping her clammy hands around my neck.

"It was just a nightmare," I told her, glancing at Jared. "It's not real."

"It felt real," she mumbled into my shirt. "It was scary."

Jared chuckled and Raven turned her head towards him.

"Hi," he said. "What's your name?"

"Raven," she whispered.

"Wow," he said. "That's pretty. My name's Jared."

"Hi," she whispered shyly and then turned her head back into my shoulder. Jared smiled.

"What was your dream about?"

Her grip tightened around my neck, but she didn't move her head to look at him. I nudged her when she didn't respond right away "…flying monkeys."

I groaned. Jared looked up at me.

"What?"

"Dean," I muttered. "I must not have heard it before. He doesn't fast forward through the flying monkey scene in The Wizard of Oz, like he's supposed to," I added with a sigh. "It gives the girl's nightmares. I'm surprised Maqahla isn't out-"

"Kim?"

"-here," I finished, looking up. Sure enough, Maqahla was standing where Raven had been moments before, though she wasn't crying.

"I had a nightmare," she said. "And-" she stopped short when she saw Raven wrapped around my body and her eyes grew wide. "Why is Raven out of bed?"

Raven turned to glare at her. "I had a nightmare, too!"

"You're such a copy cat," Maqahla told her in a disgusted voice. There was a burst of laughter; Jared was cracking up.

"Sorry," he said, grinning wide. "Your sisters are cute."

"Who are you?" Maqahla asked him. Raven glared at her again.

"His name is Jared, Maqahla. He's Kimmy's friend!"

"Oh," Maqahla said. "Your boyfriend?"

And these were the times that I wished my sisters had muzzles.

"I think it's time for bed," I said after an awkward silence. The girls immediately started protesting.

"But what if I have another nightmare?"

"You're such a baby-"

"You had a nightmare too-"

"I didn't cry about it though-"

"You know what you have to do to make a nightmare less scary?" Jared asked suddenly and they both shut up real quick. They turned to him with wide eyes.

"What?"

"Make it silly," he whispered. He let it sink in and Raven smiled slowly.

"Silly," she repeated and he nodded.

"Yep. Next time you dream about flying monkeys, pretend that their wings disappear or something, and they fall out of the sky."

Maqahla giggled. "Falling monkeys." Raven grinned at him and nodded.

"Are you okay now?" I asked them. They nodded. "Then go back to bed. I'll see you in the morning."

"Okay," Maqahla said and yawned. She gave Jared a once over before smiling. "Bye!"

Raven smiled shyly. "Bye."

They ran down the hallway and I heard their door click shut.

I looked at Jared sheepishly. "Thanks." He shrugged.

"S'what my mom used to tell me. I used to have bad dreams all the time."

We slipped into another silence, but this time it was comfortable. I glanced at the clock and my jaw dropped.

It was 11 already. I cleared my throat.

"I should probably go to bed," I said quietly. He nodded and we stood up. He grabbed my hand when I started to walk around the coffee table.

"Kim?"

My breath caught in my throat. "Yeah?"

He stepped closer to me until our breaths were mixed together and my head was spinning. My eyes grew wide.

"I meant what I said," he whispered and his voice turned husky. My eyes closed against the heat of his body. "You're beautiful."

And then he pressed his lips to mine and it was like molten lava molding around them and it was perfect against my cold skin-

It stole a couple of heart beats before he pulled away. The heat lingered. I opened my eyes to find him grinning at me. "Goodnight."

And then he was gone, leaving me there with his lingering heat. It never went away.

* * *

><p><strong>AN<strong>: Ahhh, they kiss. I didn't want it to be this huge thing, I wanted it to be little and nondescript but something that completely blows her away. TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK! Mwah 3


	8. Chapter Seven

**AN**: Hello everyone. It's 7 in the morning and I'm absolutely exhausted. I have work in an hour and I'm sitting here in my towel, but I wanted to get this out before I went off to go about my daily life...yeah.

Thanks to **alicecullenisrealinmyworld**, as always, for being an awesome beta. My head would be rolling around without her (:

This is kind of a filler chapter, and I'm really sorry, but the next chapter- let's just say that shit hits the fan and I hope to get that out sometime this week, so stick around & leave me a review!

* * *

><p>Dean didn't come home that night.<p>

"Mom," I whispered into the dark. She kept blankets and sheets over her windows to block out the sun while she slept. The only light in the room came from her digital alarm clock.

She didn't say anything.

"Mom," I said a little louder. There was slight movement and then her groggy voice, thick with sleep:

"What."

"Could you- could you get the girls on the bus this morning?" I asked hesitantly. I always felt bad asking my mom to do things in the morning because I knew that she worked late. But she never got the girls ready for school. Ever. "Dean has the car and I don't want to be late to school."

I waited patiently for her to respond, but all she did was breathe in deeply, so I knew that she fell back asleep.

"Mom."

"Jesus fucking Christ, Kim," she shouted into her pillow. I jumped. "I'm trying to sleep!"

"I have to go to school!" I said, a little astonished that she had shouted. She _never_ shouted. "I'll be late!"

"So then be late, Kim! I'm fucking sleeping."

I stood there, staring at nothing but seeing everything. My heart was pounding.

"Close the damn door."

I did, pausing and taking a deep breath. I dejectedly walked to school in the rain after having gotten the girls on the bus. My mother rarely yelled, snapped or got angry as a general rule. It just wasn't her thing. She was either too tired or sleeping, whichever came first.

Unfortunately, it wasn't a very nice day, so I threw my hood up and hoped I wouldn't be drenched completely by the time I arrived at school.

But it did give me some time to daydream about Jared.

I'd sat up in bed for hours- only getting a couple to sleep, thinking about Jared and his kiss.

What happened now? Were we- were we _boyfriend_ and _girlfriend_ now? Did we ignore the fact that we kissed and go along our merry way? What if he decided that I was a terrible kisser and he didn't even want to talk to me anymore?

I was making myself sick; my stomach began churning just thinking of all the different possible reasons why Jared would no longer want to talk to me anymore.

There was a loud rumbling behind me and Jared, driving a white dirty Bronco, grinned at me from the inside.

"Need a ride?"

Why was he smiling at me? He was acting like- like he was happy to see me and- no. No. Maybe it wasn't an act- or- I didn't even know what to think anymore.

My mind was turning to mush.

"Kim?"

"Sure," I said quickly. I dashed to the passenger side and slid in. He grinned at me.

"Hi," he said happily, but then his smile slid off his face. "Something's wrong. What's wrong?"

I stared at him and let out a nervous chuckle. "Nothing's wrong-"

"Kim," he said, but it was the way he said it that made me stop. He was sincere. "_What's wrong_?" My eyes began to sting and horrified, a tear dripped down my cheek. He looked stricken. "Why are you crying? Did something happen?" He grabbed my hand.

"I'm being stupid," I sputtered. "I'm sorry-"

"Just tell me," he said, putting the truck in park- right in the middle of the street.

"My mom," I muttered, wiping my face angrily. "She- she just yelled at me this morning and I-I just-" I sighed and took another breath to calm myself down. "Sorry. You probably don't want to hear about this-"

"_Kim_," Jared said, drawing it out. "I could listen to you talk about statistics or the weather and I'd be interested."

"Why?"

"Because I care about you," he said simply and without any hesitation. "And I care about what you have to say and what's bothering you." He looked distressed. "Why do you- why do you always look at me like that? Like I'm about to-"

"-disappear," I whispered. "Because I'm afraid that that's exactly what's going to happen-"

"I'm not," he promised. "Wherever you are is where I'll be."

The way he was looking at me and the undeniable truth in his eyes excited me more than they should have. But.

"You don't believe me," he concluded when I didn't say anything. We were still sitting in the unmoving truck in the middle of the road.

"It's hard for me to accept it," I said.

"Why?"

"Could- could I tell you another time?" I said in a small voice. "I- we're already late for school-"

He stared at me for a second before turning back around in his seat and turned the car back on. He was disappointed, I could tell. "Sure."

I arrived at school much more miserable than I was before.

xxxxxx

In class, Jared didn't speak. He kept his head propped up with his left hand and doodled on his notebook with his right. He didn't look at me. Looking down at my notebook, I noticed that it was covered in my own doodles; all they said was _Jared + Kim_, something I hadn't written in a long time and it surprised me- I'd forgotten they were there. My face turned red as I turned the notebook over.

"Jared?" I whispered. He turned his gaze towards me. He looked defeated; it wasn't a good look- it made me anxious and my heart contract. "Are you mad at me?"

He blinked, picking his head off his hand. "I-"

At that exact moment, the door burst open. Paul stood there, breathing heavily and looking like he'd just seen a ghost.

"Jared," was all he said and then he began to shake, his whole body trembling .

"Mr. Lahote," Mrs. Henley admonished. "Get back to class immediately-"

But Jared jumped up, leaving his things behind. He stood in front of Paul, who was still shaking. He placed both hands on Paul's shoulders.

"Calm down, man- what's up? What's going on?"

"Jacob," he choked out. "Sam-"

Jared began shaking too. "Sorry Mrs. Henley-"

"Mr. Cameron-!"

"I've got to go!"

And they were both gone, the door slamming shut behind them.

The teacher blinked and it was suddenly extremely quiet in the room. Everyone was staring blankly at the door.

"Well," Mrs. Henley said a minute later. "I guess we'll…uh, continue-"

Class ended only ten minutes later, and I'd barely been in class (Jared really had made us later than we should have been). He never came back.

I gathered his stuff with my own, placing his books on top. His doodles were pretty good and I found myself smiling. My heart froze when I realized what a couple of them were.

My name.

My face was red again and I hurried out of the room, tossing his books in my locker the second I got it open.

I didn't see Jared for the rest of the day and I didn't think he'd come back- Paul wasn't in the rest of our classes either.

When I walked through the parking lot to go home, Jared's books tucked safely away in my bag, I noticed the white Bronco was the last truck in the lot. I ripped a piece of paper from my own notebook and pulled out a pen.

_I'm sorry about earlier. I have your books, but I have work tonight. Come by the store and I'll give them to you._

_I really am sorry_.

I hesitated then left it under the windshield wiper, hoping that it wouldn't start raining again by the time he got to it.

By the time I got home, it was pouring.

* * *

><p><strong>AN<strong>: Alriiiiighty then. So I said before shit's going to hit the fan...what do you think is going to happen? I'll give you a _little_ hint- you'll never want to work in a department store. Ever. (: Please review! xx


	9. Chapter Eight

**AN**: So this is kind of in a timely matter, no? Sorry that I haven't gotten back to all of your reviews. I've been really, really ill the last week and I haven't been able to see a doctor, so I've literally been in bed all day, every day, sleeping. But I read all of them and they make me so happy, so thank you very, very much!

A couple things I want to address, number one being that this chapter is _not_ beta'd. I have a fabulous beta, **alicecullenisrealinmyworld**, and it's not that I don't doubt her abilities because she's freaking brilliant, but I like this chapter so much, I wanted her to be surprised as well! (:

The second thing that I want to address is that this chapter kind of takes a scary turn- I warned everyone last chapter that this chapter would make you not want to work in a department store and it's true- I work in a department store, and even though it seems silly, stuff like this happens _all of the time_. I'm actually trained and prepped all of the time on how to handle situations like these, and while it hasn't happened to me, it's one of my biggest fears.

The third thing is that I have a photobucket account at which I will be posting pictures of outfits, Dean & Kim's car, things like that, so if you want to visit there, you are more than welcome! Link is on my profile page!

The very last thing (sorry, I know this is really dragged out) is that I have a twitter account! Please follow me! Let me know you're from FFnet and I'll follow you back! (:

Alright, lovies, the time has now come. Please let me know what you think by reviewing! Much love! xx

* * *

><p>"Kim, I'll be right back!"<p>

"Okay," I called out from behind the counter.

We'd just gotten a new shipment of gold chain necklaces, so I was taking the old ones off of display and meticulously putting the new ones up. I was actually just taking my time; the lights they had in the cases were hot and it was almost like I was being in Jared's embrace. I took a little longer than I normally would have. The store was empty and I was free to take it slow.

Dean had brought the car back home after being God-knows-where, but he wasn't home. Mom had ignored me when she emerged from her bedroom and silently began making the girls dinner. I'd gotten ready for work and left without saying goodbye.

I heard someone approach the counter around the same time that I dropped a necklace.

"Shit," I muttered and reached down to grab it, but something caught me by my hair and yanked me up, hard.

I cried out, my hands reaching up to my head and my feet flailing; I knocked over the entire display of necklaces and they scattered.

I was faced with the end of a gun. It had taken me a couple of seconds to realize that it was in fact a gun- I had never seen one before, never touched one and it was hard to believe that someone in La Push, or Makah for that matter, had gotten their hands on one to begin with. Where would they have gotten it from?

"How's it going, Kimmy?"

My eyes drifted to the person holding the gun and I could feel the blood draining from my face.

Keith.

"Keith," I said slowly. "What are you doing?"

"Talked to Avenue today?" he asked. The gun was held steady between and it was _almost_ impressive how the gun wasn't shaking and how calm he seemed.

_Almost. _

I quickly did a scout of the area around the jewelry counter. There weren't any customers down at this end of the department and security was gone for the evening. All of these things added up to one thing:

No one would see me die.

"I haven't," I said quietly. He still had a tight grip on my hair; the gun was six inches away from my forehead.

This was surreal. This type of stuff happened in movies, not on an _Indian reservation_ in the middle of nowhere- Makah and La Push were small towns with even smaller populations. This type of shit just _didn't_ happen.

I vaguely wondered where Jill went and wondered if she really would be right back.

"Look at me!" he shouted at me suddenly and I jumped, jerking my hair in his hand and I hissed in pain. "Look at _me_!

"Avenue broke up with me because of you, did you know that?" I didn't answer him. I just kept my mouth shut and hoped that this would end soon because my heart was barely pumping and if he didn't shoot me now, then I'm pretty sure I'd die of heart failure instead. "Well? Did you? She called me when I got out of jail! Did you know? Answer me!"

"No," I said, clearing my throat. "I didn't know."

"It was because of you! If you hadn't _interfered-"_ He waved the gun around in emphasis and my stomach rolled. "-if I could have just _talked_ to her and figured out _why_ she was cheating on me-"

"She's not cheating on you," I told him and I tried to make my voice sincere, but it just came out robotic. My hands were starting to shake. "She told me-"

"Yes, she did!" he shouted and I shut my mouth. The gun inched closer. "I saw the text messages, I know what I saw-!"

"Kim!"

Several things happened at once: Jared appeared over Keith's shoulder, his face indescribable. Keith dropped me by my hair and instead took hold of me in a headlock, wrapping his arm around my neck and dragged me over the counter. I hit my hip on the counter and cried out, before sliding down the other side.

Three seconds had passed and everything had been in slow motion. I saw everything perfectly and that made it even _more_ surreal. Surely this was a dream.

The pain in my hip screamed that it wasn't.

The gun clicked loudly; the tip was cold as it pressed against my temple.

I opened my eyes to see Jared's entire body convulsing. His face was hard and lined, red from anger.

I'm sure my face was red too- I could hardly breathe. The moment that I felt Keith's breath on my ear was the moment that the fear finally set in and I wanted to throw up.

"Jared," I choked out. I had both hands on Keith's arm, trying to alleviate the pressure on my windpipe. "Jared-"

"Shut up, Kimmy!" Keith growled. "Don't fucking move," he added to Jared. "Or I'll paint a Picasso on the floor with her blood."

Jared, his face still red from anger, made an odd constricting noise in the back of his throat and didn't move. His eyes were brighter than normal despite his fury.

My stomach quaked.

"Kim," Jared said and his eyes never left mine. If I was going to die and Jared was the last thing I saw, it wouldn't really be that bad. I prayed that it wouldn't hurt.

"Stop talking!" Keith shouted.

"What do you want, Keith," I choked out. "Tell me what you want!"

"I want you to call Avenue," he said into my ear and I shivered. "And I want you to convince her to take me back."

"Keith," I said. "Avenue and I- we're not even friends, she won't-"

"You convinced her to break up with me," he said. "And you can convince her to take me back."

"Keith," Jared said, his voice quivering. "She's telling you the truth."

"I _thought_," Keith shouted with a laugh. "I thought I told you to shut the hell up, pretty boy? One more word, and I'll become the world's best new painter!"

"Jared," I whispered, but I knew he could hear me. "Stop it-"

Keith tightened his grip around my neck, effectively cutting off my air supply all together.

"Stop talking to him," he growled at me. "All I have to do is pull the trigger-"

"I'm sorry," I gasped. "I didn't mean it-"

"Yes, you did!" he crowed. "You did it all on purpose, you _knew_ she was cheating on me-"

"No, no- I swear it- I didn't even know you- you were dating-"

I couldn't look at Jared anymore; it was contorted in pain and in fear, and the fact that he had tears in his eyes was cutting my insides up. I could tell he wanted to do something, but was frozen to the spot. I'm glad he didn't move; he didn't need to get hurt either. My vision was starting to go black around the edges and I struggled to keep from passing out.

"You're lying," he growled. "You're lying to me, just like Avenue!"

"I'm not," I said and my voice sounded like it was underwater; far away. "I swear it."

He growled once more but it ended in a gurgle and I could finally breathe; his arm fell away from my neck and before I could comprehend what was even happening, I was in Jared's hot arms and I could breathe and Keith was on the ground surrounded by a puddle of blood.

Dead.

* * *

><p>"I'm so sorry I couldn't get there faster," Jill repeated for the fifth time. "If I could have gotten there sooner-"<p>

"Jill," I said and put a hand on her shoulder. Her eyes were bloodshot and she was shaking. "It's okay. Seriously. If you hadn't gotten the police when you did-"

"Can we not talk about it anymore?" Jared said desperately. "Really."

She gave me a pointed look and then sighed. "I'll go see if you can leave yet."

She left and Jared and I were standing outside by the entrance of the department store. He gave me a grave look. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fi-"

"Don't say you're fine, Kim," Jared said in frustration. "I know that you're not."

I looked down at my shoes, kicking a rock and watching it fly across the parking lot. "I'll _be_ fine. I just- I don't want to be alone-"

It was difficult getting those words out of my mouth. My face flushed. Jared placed both of his hot hands on my cheeks and lifted until our eyes met.

"I'm not leaving," he told me. "Not until you ask me to. And maybe not even after that," he added with a smile.

I chuckled, still embarrassed. "Well then you might never leave."

He shrugged, still smiling. "Are you okay with that?"

I raised an eyebrow. "I should be asking _you_ that."

He leaned in close so that our foreheads were grazing each other and all I could smell was him. It made my head spin.

"You don't have to worry about that," he whispered.

Someone cleared their throat. Jill was watching us with a slightly knowing look to her face. "They said you could go. They got everything they needed, they said."

"Have you talked to Simone?" I asked her. Simone was our store manager. I could see her inside, talking to a police officer and she looked exhausted and worried. Jill nodded.

"She said you don't have to come back until you're ready," she said. "She said she'd understand if you didn't want to come back at all and she's not expecting you too."

I shook my head. "I'll think about it and let you know. I'll call you." I pulled her into a tight hug and whispered, "Thanks," into her hair. "For everything."

"You're welcome," she said, pulling back and holding my face. "Take care of yourself, okay?" She glanced at Jared. "Be happy. Life's too short. Just be happy."

I nodded as she patted my cheek and walked away.

"I'm ready to go home," I said, turning to Jared. "I have your stuff in my car."

"My stuff?" he asked blankly.

"Your books from this morning?" I told him. "I left a note on your truck-"

"My car's still at school," he told me. "I didn't go back."

"Then how did you know that I was here?" I asked, baffled. "How did you get here-"

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about," he muttered. "I came here because I wanted to talk." He stuffed his hands in his pockets and nodded towards my car. "C'mon."

Still confused, we walked to my car and Jared wrapped an arm around me. Since he kissed me, I hadn't been cold- it was an odd feeling, but I was trying not to question it, especially since I didn't have to layer my socks at night anymore.

His heart stayed with me.

"You took my books?" Jared asked when we got to my car.

I nodded, unlocking it. "Passenger seat."

I started the car as Jared sat down. He put a hand on the one that was on the gear shift, stopping me.

"What?"

"Are you okay to drive?" he asked cautiously.

I gave him a weird look. "I'm not drunk, Jared."

"No, but for someone who just had a gun pointed at their head, you're acting very blasé."

"Nice vocab," I commented dryly, shaking his hand away and backing out. It was almost midnight and I was exhausted.

"Don't change the subject," he pleaded. "Are you sure-"

"Jared," I said tiredly. "I'm okay-"

"How, though?" he pressed. "Why are you acting like you didn't just- almost- _die,_" he choked out and shook his head. "I can't even _think_ about it-"

"So don't," I told him.

"It still doesn't explain anything!"

I sighed. "Do you remember when you told me that- that you wanted me to be safe around you?"

He nodded. I stopped as a light turned red and I looked at him. "I thought I was going to- to die. But I was just looking at you and I knew that- that if I _did_…I'd be okay. Because- you…you were there."

He grabbed my face suddenly and pressed his lips to mine. I froze.

Jared Cameron was kissing me. Again.

One hand slid from my face up into my hair and knotted there, keeping my in place. His skin was so warm, so hot, his scent so heavy in my nose. It was so much and not enough. I wanted him. I literally just wanted him.

I wanted him to be _mine_.

There was a loud beep from behind us and I broke away with a gasp, forgetting that we were at a red light, and there were cars behind us. The light was green now and I sped off down the road.

The rest of the car ride was spent in silence. I turned the car off when I parked in front of my house, still trying to catch my breath.

He laced his fingers between mine and locked them, tight.

"I know you're tired," he finally said. All I could see was his silhouette. "But could I come in? We should talk."

The fear that settled in my stomach was so instantaneous, that I thought I might vomit right there. What did that kiss mean now that he wanted to talk? Was it supposed to be soothing for the unfortunate, inevitable outcome? My hand suddenly felt clammy in his.

"Okay," I whispered.

* * *

><p><strong>AN<strong>: Take a breath- she's okay. Again, like I said, this has never happened to me before, although a coworker of mine who does in fact work in the Jewelry department ( I work in Women's Accessories at JCPenney) had a small scare. She had a customer who was buying an abnormal amount of jewelry with someone else's credit card and had his hands in his pockets the whole time. Of course, this may seem like a small detail to some, but when security finally busted him later (he ended up stealing someone's wallet) they found a 9 mm handgun in his pocket. Luckily for my coworker, nothing happened, but had she denied him the jewelry, _anything_ could have happened. So just be careful! Anyhoo, let me know what y'all think in a review and I hope to update sometime soon! xx


	10. Chapter Nine

**AN:** Is there even a point in apologizing for the incredibly long wait? My excuse is that I'm almost 19 years old and life has gotten the best of me. All I can do is shrug and sincerely apologize to whoever is still sticking around and reading this. There was 22 reviews last chapter- holy shit, guys. I'll be responding to those hopefully sometime today or tomorrow. I'm sorry for the wait. xx.

* * *

><p>"You're shaking," he said.<p>

"I do that sometimes," I whispered.

We were sitting on my sofa in the dark and Jared still hadn't let go of my hand. I could see his face through the moonlight coming through the curtains. His face was stoic.

"What's wrong?" he asked me. I shrugged.

"I'm not sure."

"Are you _sure_ you're okay from earlier?" he asked. "Don't lie to me to try to make me feel better-"

I frowned, although I knew that he couldn't see me.

"I would _never_ lie to you."

"Then tell me what's wrong," he whispered in my ear. I sighed, concentrating on the way his hand felt in mine.

"I'm afraid you're going to disappear," I said quietly. "Like you'll slip through my fingers like smoke-"

"You said that this morning," he told me. "And I told you that I wasn't going anywhere. Why do you think that?"

"Because it just doesn't seem real," I said quietly. "You- you probably know this already, but-"

I stopped.

"What is it?"

"I've liked you," I whispered and closed my eyes as my stomach rolled in fear. "I've liked you all year, for so long. And you've never looked at me- once. And when you finally did, and you- you started talking to me- it was like…like a dream come true, or something." My face was _bright_ red, and I was extremely grateful that he couldn't see me in the dark. "And I feel like- like if you were to just- just _leave_ without an explanation, I just-" I shook my head. "I don't know what I'd do."

There. I'd said. I told him that I liked him.

He didn't say anything at first. His thumb moved across the back of my hand and he sighed.

"I haven't been completely honest with you."

My heart skipped a beat. "What?"

"I haven't lied to you," he said, backtracking. "I couldn't lie to you. But I haven't exactly…told you everything you need to know." He leaned his head back on the couch. "I've just been- afraid to tell you because I don't know how you'll react. And I haven't wanted _this_-" He held up our hands. "-to end just yet."

End. This was ending. My breath was gone, but he was still talking.

"How well do you know our legends?"

"What does that have to do with anything?" I gasped. My whole body hurt; my heart was aching, my stomach was churning and my head was pounding. I could hear the blood flowing in my ears. "What-"

"It has to do with everything," he said grimly. "Everything. Do you know them?"

"Yes," I struggled to say. "I do."

"You know how we're descended from wolves? The Cold Ones, and the third wife?"

I nodded, trying to wrap my mind around what he was saying. Everyone knew those stories. Before Maqahla and Raven's dad ran off with his secretary, he used to tell me and Dean the stories of our legends before we went to bed at night.

"They're not legends."

"I- I don't understand," I said quickly. "Jared-"

"I'm a wolf."

I blinked. "What."

"I'm a werewolf," he repeated.

Before I knew what was going on, I let out a bark of laughter. "Yeah. Okay."

"I'm not joking, Kim," he said. He didn't sound amused. "I'm not."

I stared at him in disbelief. "A werewolf."

"I just told you I would never lie to you?" he reminded me. I nodded. "I'm not lying."

"How is this even possible?" I said after a minute. "How-"

"We don't know," he said quickly. "We're not sure how-"

"We?" I asked. "There's more?"

He nodded. "Paul, Sam Uley and Embry. And Jacob Black now," he added quickly. "That's why I had to leave this morning. He phased for the first time."

"Phased?" I repeated.

"When we change from human to wolf. It's called phasing."

"And Jacob Black changed into a werewolf today?" I clarified. He nodded.

"We had to go help him," he told me. "The first time it happens…it's scary. Not fun." He shuddered.

My disbelief and skepticism left as quickly as it came and was replaced by a sudden sadness. I tried to picture Jared turning into a wolf, but all I could picture was a puppy. I moved closer to him, leaning my head on his shoulder and he put his arm around me.

"Was it scary for you?" I whispered. He sighed and I settled deeper into his warmth.

"It's always scary the first time," he said. "It's- not a good feeling. It's horrible, actually. I was home alone. My mom was shopping. I was having really wicked mood swings; happy and excited in one second and the pissed off and depressed in the next. I started getting really hot- that's what scared me the most. I thought my blood was literally boiling. I thought I was on fire. I went outside to get cool, but it didn't do anything. Then Sam ran into my backyard and then that was it- I was on the ground and I had four paws."

"That was it," I repeated. I felt him nod.

"Yeah. And then Sam changed and I could _hear_ him, in my mind-"

"Wait, slow down," I said. I felt wide awake now. "You could _hear_ him?"

"When we're all wolves, we can hear each other's thoughts."

My jaw dropped. "Everything?"

"Everything."

"Wow," I said. "This- this is _crazy_."

"I know," he said with a small laugh. "Believe me, I know."

"What else can you do?" I asked him. He laughed for real this time.

"I can fly," he said sarcastically and I giggled. "No. I can heal really fast."

"Heal?"

"Yeah. If I get a cut or something, it takes, like, a day to turn into a scar." I frowned, not even liking the fact that he could get hurt. But that was stupid, anyone could get hurt. Just thinking about him in pain made my head hurt. "And my body temperature is up, obviously."

"I've always wondered about that," I told him. "I'm not cold when I'm with you. I haven't even had to take my medicine anymore."

"Really?" he said in surprise, pulling away to look at me. "For your anemia?"

I nodded. "I haven't been as tired. I'm not cold anymore."

"Did your doctor tell you that you could stop your medicine?"

I shook my head. "I'm going to go in a couple of days and tell him. I just wanted to see if I'd be okay."

"Oh," he said, but I could tell that he didn't like that I wasn't taking my medicine. "You should- you should keep taking it…just in case. Just until you go to the doctor to find out what he says," he said quickly when I started to protest. "I'd feel better. Please?" He gave me an innocent look and I groaned. He kissed the side of my face, and I stopped groaning immediately.

We sat like that for a few moments before he sighed again. "That's not it."

"What else could you possibly tell me?" I said with a laugh. "Harry Potter's real too?"

He chuckled. "I wish. That'd be cool, wouldn't it?" I nodded, and then waited for him to continue. "This was what I was nervous about telling you."

"Why?"

"Because it could screw everything up," he whispered. "It could. And I'm terrified to tell you."

"Just try," I offered, but he spoke over me quickly.

"Iimprintedonyouandi'msorry."

I blinked. "What."

He took a deep breath. "I imprinted on you. And I'm sorry."

"Well I don't even know what that means," I said. "And sorry for what?"

"Imprinting," he said slowly. "Is supposed to be a rare thing-"

_Shit's supposed to be rare, man!_

Paul had said that to Jared the day that Jared started talking to me. Rare.

"Supposed to," I said. "But it's not?"

"Well, it's happened to me and Sam," he said. "But it's really not supposed to happen at all."

"What is it?"

"It's how we find our soul mates," he whispered. I froze. "It's an instantaneous thing, one that I can't control. Like falling in love at first sight. When I saw you on the first day that I came back- I just looked into your eyes and- and I knew. You're my imprint, Kim," he finished a little lamely. "My soul mate. And I'm sorry."

I'd never been more confused, excited and sick to my stomach before in my whole life.

"Soul mate," I said. "We're soul mates."

"I might not have a choice in this," he told me. "But you do, Kim, you do. That's why I'm sorry. You don't have to stick around if you don't want to. I can be your best friend. I can be like your brother. I can be more." My heart picked up. "I could be anything you want me to be and I'll be okay with it. I just- I need you in my life. The soul mate, love at first sight thing- it's not just because I'm a werewolf, Kim," he pulled my face close to his. "You have to believe me. We were _made_ for each other. We were born because we were meant to be together, in whatever way you want. We were always meant to be soul mates. The imprint just made me open my eyes, Kim, that's it- it didn't create these- these feelings I have for you, it just made me see you. But like I said, you don't-"

"Stop," I told him. "I _don't_ have a choice in this."

"Yes, you do," he said quickly. "You always do, this is all you- if you want me to be gone, I'll go- I mean, it's going to hurt me, and it's going to hurt you too, but if that's what you want-"

"No, stop," I said, holding his face and shutting him up. "That's not what I meant."

"Then what do you-"

"I didn't have a choice from the moment I saw you," I whispered. "I just- I wanted you and only you. You didn't know-"

"Don't try to make excuses for me," he said in astonishment. "Kim, we could have had _weeks_, _months_, maybe even _years_ before this- if only I'd looked for you in the hallways or- or turned around sooner in class," he said sadly. "We could have been friends or- or-"

I shook my head. "I would never have been okay with just friends. I don't want that. Not by a long shot."

He looked broken. "Then what do you want, Kim? I'll give it to you."

Swallowing the hard lump in my throat, I leaned forward and kissed him. He breathed out through his nose and it fanned across my face. He wrapped an arm around my back and pulled me closer so that my knees were on either side of his body and I was sitting on him. He cupped my face gently and I couldn't feel or think about anything except the way that our lips molded together.

"I just want you," I whispered against his lips. "You're the only thing that I've wanted."

"I'm yours," he said quietly. "And I won't be anything else unless you ask."


	11. Chapter Ten

**AN:** So the fact that it's been almost nine months since I've last updated is not okay. I'm sorry! Real life has just caught up with me, I guess. I mean, when I first started writing this story, I had just started my second semester of college as a freshmen, and now instead of starting my second semester as a sophmore, I've been kicked out of my house because I wanted to take a year off. My mother has been in and out of the hospital since May of 2012 and I want to be close to her, not 400 miles away at school. My aunt who I'd been living with didn't like that, and kicked me out. So now I'm staying with my manager from work and helping her with her daughter! It's been crazy these last few months, and I'm sorry that I've completely neglected this story and all of your kind words- I think I've responded back to everyone, and if I've missed you, I'm sorry- I get them sent to my email on my phone so I read every single one of them and I'm extremely appreciative. I kind of abandoned everything and everyone- my poor beta probably hates me considering I just up and left. But like I said, real life has its way of creeping up beside you and biting you in the ass and that's exactly what it did with me. It doesn't feel like an entire year has past, but indeed it has. I wrote this story in a journal I had and mostly during my math class that I couldn't have cared less about lol I'd get lost in the world of Jared and Kim instead of learning about statistics. I hope you guys still continue to review and thanks for sticking around for so long :)

**Just a few things to remember: **The links to my twitter, tumblr and photobucket account are on my profile. Pictures on Photobucket will (hopefully) continue to be posted through out the story. I'll let you know when something new is posted. If you follow me on twitter and tumblr, just shoot me a tweet or a message to let me know where you're from and I'll follow you back :)

**Disclaimer**: Only Dean, Maqahla and Raven are mine!

I woke up the next morning to a loud pounding on the front door. The clock read just before seven. When I really opened my eyes, I was already stumbling through the hallway to the front door. Dean's bedroom door opened and he poked his head through, rubbing his eyes.

"Who's here?" he mumbled. I made a gurrutal noise as I flipped on a light switch before I opened the door.

Wrong decision.

Lights flashed in quick succession and I stumbled back into Dean, where we both crashed to the wall.

"_Kmber, how are you doing_?"

"_How are you feeling after everything that happened last night?_"

"_How do you feel knowing that Keith is dead?_"

"_Do you have any comments?_"

I blinked a few times. I was wide awake now. About six or seven white people- people who did _not _live on the reservation- all holding large cameras and one even with a microphone.

Reporters.

My jaw dropped as I realized what this was. I had forgotten- after everything that happened last night with Jared- I almost died.

"What are they talking about?" Dean asked, genuinely confused. He shoved me off of him and then helped me to my feet. The reporters were still going insane. I pushed past him to shut the big door, thankful that the storm door still separated us.

"_Kim, do you have any comment at all-_"

"No comment," I said, feeling strange. Why was this happening? "Please leave-"

"What's going on?" Dean insisted, coming to stand beside me. The reporters went wild when they saw him. The lights kept flashing. I was getting dizzy.

"_Dean, how do you feel knowing your twin sister almost died last night?_"

"_Do you wish you could have been there to help her?_"

"_Were you friends with Keith?_"

"Come again?" Dean asked in surprise. Before anyone could say anything else, I slammed the door shut, rattling the window frames of the house. Thankfully, the voices of the reporters became muted.

My heart was racing.

"What the hell," Dean asked slowly. He jerked his thumb at the door. "was that all about?"

"Who the hell is banging around outside while I'm trying to sleep?" My mother's voice carried down the hallway. I could feel myself starting to sweat, even though I was freezing. I stuck my hands under my arm pits.

"Kim?" Dean asked. "Who's Keith? Why do they think you almost died last night?"

My mother rounded the corner, blinking at us blearily.

"Who's at the door?"

"A bunch of reporters, or something," Dean shrugged. "For Kim."

"For Kim?" she repeated and I shivered. She laughed. "What did you do, Kimmy, kill someone?"

My stomach lurched and I knew what was coming, so I bolted into the bathroom and vomited into the toilet. My stomach heaved on its own account and I couldn't stop even when there was nothing left to throw up.

There was a rough hand on my forehead, swiping back strands of hair. I wanted to look up at Dean, but I couldn't stop heaving.

"Kim?"

He sounded a little worried, but I just shook my head. I heaved again, but this time bile mixed with what could only be blood came up and, exhausted, I collapsed to the ground and hugged the bottom of the toilet bowl.

"Oh fuck. Kim? Kimmy?"

"I'm just tired, Dean," I mumbled. His hands were so cold on my face, wiping away the sweat and pushing my hair back. His face was going in and out of focus, and then someone was crying and Mom was yelling and my stomach muscles hurt so bad after all that. So I closed my eyes and fell asleep.

When I woke up, I didn't open my eyes.

I could tell, by the all familiar beeping, that I was in the hospital. And not just any hospital- but Forks Medical Center. My stomach rolled at the thought.

Keeping my eyes closed, I tried to broaden my other senses without letting someone know that I was awake. I knew that there was someone in the room- I could hear them breathing, so they must have been right next to me. I tried to keep my breathing even to appear as though I was still sleeping. Other than the breathing and the beeping, I could hear muted voices, which meant that my door was closed. I couldn't smell anything other than rubbing alcohol.

"I know you're awake," the person said. I started; I hadn't realized how close they were.

I peeled my eyes open to match the voice with the face. Jared. Despite not feeling all together, I smiled at him, though he did not smile at me. He looked pissed off.

I cocked an eyebrow at him. "What's got your panties in a twist?"

"Now isn't exactly the right time for jokes, Kimber." That took me back. He wasn't yelling- he wasn't even talking loud- but his voice was husky and authoritive. I shivered. "You lied to me."

"What?"

"You lied to me."

"How? About what?" Genuinely confused, I tried to think back to a time when I had lied to him and came up with nothing.

"You told me- you told me you were taking your medication." His voice cracked at the end. I was horrified.

"No, Jared, no- I told you that I didn't need to take my medication-"

"But that wasn't true!" he shouted and I jumped again. "You _do_ need to take it," he continued in a quieter voice. "You are still sick, Kim. You _have_ to take your medication."

In spite of the situation, I crossed my arms. I hated feeling like I was being scolded, like I was Maqahla or Raven. My medicine was _my _business and no one else's, aside from my doctor.

"Thanks Mom," I said, sour. "Are you done yet?"

His face glowered. I could see his hands were trembling, like how he did with Keith.

"If you leave me," he said and it felt like my heart was breaking in half when his voice cracked again. "I will never forgive you."

I was silent for a second, trying to ignore the pounding rushing noise in my ears. I wiped my face, pulling the IV wires.

"Who said anything about leaving?" I asked quietly.

"You did," he said sharply. "As soon as you decided you didn't want to take your medication anymore!"

"What-"

"Your medication, Kim, your medicine! Don't you understand? You take them for a reason! You're in danger of dying-" He stopped, unable to go on and ran a hand through his hair, gripping it like he was going to rip it out. When he looked up at me, his eyes were rimmed in red. "If you die, Kim- I'll never forgive you."

"I'm not leaving," I croaked.

"Then take your medication," he yelled at me. "Dont leave me alone, Kim, please! I can't- I can't take it if you- you-"

"Jared-" I reached for his hand tugging him until he was curled around me and I realized then that I was freezing. I shivered against him as he laid his head in the crook of my neck. I'm sure we looked a little ridiculous- Jared, almost seven foot tall, curled up around me, pale and barely average height, on a small twin sized hospital gurney.

He pressed his lips to the juncture between my collarbone and neck. "You don't understand how different it is for an imprint. You're like a vital organ- without you, I don't exist- _can't _exist. If you leave me-" His breath shuddered on my skin.

"I'm not- I'll take my medication again, Jared, I promise. I won't die-"

"Don't say it," he whispered.

I don't know how long we laid there for-I stroked his hair until I could feel him breathing deeply and I knew he was asleep. Just as I closed my eyes, the door opened and Jared jumped up, immediately awake. A growl ripped through his mouth and he started trembling.

Doctor Carlisle Cullen raised a single brow at him.

"What are you doing here?" Jared snarled. His body was shaking again.

"I'm Kimber's doctor," Dr. Cullen responded. He smiled at me. "Long time, no see, Kim."

I flushed at his words. "Hello."

Jared's jaw dropped and he looked at me. "This _leech_ is your doctor?"

I frowned at him. "What?"

Dr. Cullen looked a little uncomfortable. "Can I speak with you outside for a moment, please?" I nodded, pulling the sheet back from my bed, but he held up a hand. "I meant your...friend."

Jared snarled again.

"Is that really a good idea?" I asked and shot Jared a glare. What was _wrong_ with him? Dr. Cullen just smiled pleasantly, looking at Jared expectantly.

Jared stalked from the room, without a backwards glance to me.

The door shut behind Dr. Cullen, who casually said, "We'll be right back."

I doubted it.

I was expecting to hear shouting and rage- from Jared, mostly, but I didn't hear anything. Maybe they walked down the hallway. Or to another floor. I waited for a few minutes and was just about to push the Nurse button when Dr. Cullen walked in...alone.

"Where did Jared go?" I asked, my heart thumping wildly.

"He's just outside. I wanted to speak with you first about some things before he comes back in."

I didn't tell Dr. Cullen that Jared could probably hear through the walls and nodded instead. He sat down in a spinny chair and swiveled his way over to me, reading a few things off my file. It was pretty thick- I'd been coming to Forks Medical Center for a while now, since the health clinic we had on the reservation wasn't equipped with the things my body needed.

"It's been awhile since you've last been here, hasn't it?" He looked up at me. I nodded, a bit guilty.

"I haven't really felt the need to come in," I said. Dr. Cullen nodded, looking thoughtful.

"I hope that in the future, you'll want to come in more often for regular checkups, so we can avoid situations like the one you just had." It wasn't exactly a reprimand but I felt embarassed anyways.

"I heard about what happened to you last night," he said conversationally. I had to really think for a minute and I almost choked.

"That was _last night?_" I took my first look out the window; the sun was setting. It felt like weeks ago. "How did you hear?"

"I'm very good friends with Charlie Swan," he said. He looked genuinely concerned. "I can't imagine how frightened you must have been."

I shrugged, trying not to shudder. "I don't have to worry about it anymore."

"Can you tell me about this morning?"

I explained to him about the reporters and how they had crowded around on my front steps. The flashing lights had made me dizzy and I had gotten nauseous, then passed out.

"Dean brought you here," Dr. Cullen said. He looked unhappy. "But your mother-"

"-has work," I finished for him. "It's fine. Where is Dean?"

"He left to get your sisters and to prepare dinner."

"Is he coming back?"

"I don't think so," he said. "You'll be discharged shortly."

"Oh." That was a first. I'd always had to spend the night after an episode. Interesting.

"We ran some tests just to see if everything is up to par; your anemia seems to be at a standstill- it's not getting worse, but it's not getting better, either. Which is a good sign, I believe. Before, your red blood cell count was getting lower and lower, whereas now, it's stopped decreasing all together."

He continued on, talking about possibilities to get the red blood cell count up- blood transfusions, birth control pills, and others, but those were last resorts.

"I'd like you to come back in for a check up in two weeks." He wrote some things down in my chart and then closed it, standing. "Do well to remember it this time." He winked at me. "Feel well, Kim. A nurse will be by with the discharge papers in a few minutes."

"Thanks," I said. Dr. Cullen opened the door and Jared stood there, obviously waiting impatiently. Dr. Cullen swept his hand behind him, beckoning Jared into the room. The door shut behind him and then it was just the two of us.

"I can't believe that he's your doctor," he grumbled. He climbed back into the bed and wrapped himself around me. I hadn't realized I was cold until he did.

"Why not? What did you call him before?"

"A leech." The word sounded like poison on his tongue.

"I don't understand."

"I'll tell you another time," he said. I didn't press him.

"He's a good doctor," I said half-heartedly. "He's really nice, and they say he's the best around-"

"Until he sucks your blood," Jared muttered under his breath. He didn't sound like he could help himself. I don't think I was meant to hear it, but with his mouth on my neck still, and so close to my ear, I did. It took me a minute to work what he said out but then it all clicked into place. I gasped.

"He's- he..what? No-"

Jared sat up. "So much for explaining it to you later."

"You shouldn't have said what you did then," I said, feeling stupid. "The legends-"

"The Cold Ones," he murmured. He nodded his head to the door. "He's the reason why I am what I am."

"How can he work in a hospital?" I said, hushed. I felt sick to my stomach. No way. There was no way that- that he was-

"Supposedly, they're 'vegeterians'," he grumbled. "They only suck the blood of animals. I don't trust them though."

My heart was pounding a million miles per hour. Dr. Cullen- a _vampire_? This world was just getting crazier and crazier.

"Are you sure that Harry Potter isn't real?" I whispered. I think that'd be a nice antidote to what was going on. Jared laughed.

"I'll believe anything at this point."


	12. Apology

Well. It's been awhile.

Is it worth it to apologize? I just...life. You know? Life just gets you sometimes. And it yoked me up by the throat this time. Soo...I'm sorry.

That being said, I've been re-editing a lot of this story the past few days. I think I want to re-vamp (haha) the entire thing. I'm not sure if I want to take this one down, and start a completely new story, or if I want to edit each chapter as it is. The only thing being with that is that I don't believe you will get alerts as to when they are edited, if you have me on your alerts.

So let me know? At a loss here guys. But the story goes on! I promise :)


End file.
